Maximum Cardinality Search for Computing Minimal Triangulations

We present a new algorithm, called MCS-M, for computing minimal triangulations of graphs. Lex-BFS, a seminal algorithm for recognizing chordal graphs, was the genesis for two other classical algorithms: Lex-M and MCS. Lex-M extends the fundamental concept used in Lex-BFS, resulting in an algorithm that also computes a minimal triangulation of an arbitrary graph. MCS simplified the fundamental concept used in Lex-BFS, resulting in a simpler algorithm for recognizing chordal graphs. The new simpler algorithm MCS-M combines the extension of Lex-M with the simplification of MCS, achieving all the results of Lex-M in the same time complexity.