Adjacency matrix in the context of Square matrix

In mathematics, a homogeneous relation (also called endorelation) on a set X is a binary relation between X and itself, i.e. it is a subset of the Cartesian product X × X. This is commonly phrased as "a relation on X" or "a (binary) relation over X". An example of a homogeneous relation is the relation of kinship, where the relation is between people.

Common types of endorelations include orders, graphs, and equivalences. Specialized studies of order theory and graph theory have developed understanding of endorelations. Terminology particular for graph theory is used for description, with an ordinary (undirected) graph presumed to correspond to a symmetric relation, and a general endorelation corresponding to a directed graph. An endorelation R corresponds to a logical matrix of 0s and 1s, where the expression xRy (x is R-related to y) corresponds to an edge between x and y in the graph, and to a 1 in the square matrix of R. It is called an adjacency matrix in graph terminology.

In graph theory, a perfect matching in a graph is a matching that covers every vertex of the graph. More formally, given a graph G with edges E and vertices V, a perfect matching in G is a subset M of E, such that every vertex in V is adjacent to exactly one edge in M. The adjacency matrix of a perfect matching is a symmetric permutation matrix.

A perfect matching is also called a 1-factor; see Graph factorization for an explanation of this term. In some literature, the term complete matching is used.