A ternary heap is a type of data structure that falls under the category of heap data structures. A heap is a complete binary tree, where every level except the last is completely filled, and all nodes are as far left as possible. In a ternary heap, each parent node has at most three child nodes.
What Makes Ternary Heap Unique?
Unlike binary heaps, which have two child nodes per parent node, ternary heaps have three child nodes. This means that each parent node can have up to three children, and the relationship between parent and child nodes is maintained by the heap property.
The Heap Property
The heap property states that for a max-heap, every parent node must be greater than or equal to its child nodes. Similarly, in a min-heap, every parent node must be less than or equal to its child nodes. This property ensures that the maximum or minimum value is always at the root of the heap.
Operations on Ternary Heaps
Ternary heaps support various operations such as insertion, deletion, and extraction of the maximum or minimum value.
Insertion
When inserting a new element into a ternary heap, it is placed at the next available position according to the complete binary tree structure. After insertion, the heap property might be violated. To restore the heap property, we compare the newly inserted element with its parent node and swap them if necessary until the property is satisfied.
Deletion
To delete an element from a ternary heap, we first remove it from its position in the tree. Then, we replace it with either one of its children or grandchildren while maintaining the complete binary tree structure. After replacement, we compare this new element with its children and grandchildren and swap them if necessary to satisfy the heap property.
Extracting Maximum/Minimum Value
The process of extracting the maximum or minimum value from a ternary heap involves deleting the root node and replacing it with the last element in the tree. We then compare this new root with its children and grandchildren and swap them if necessary to satisfy the heap property.
Applications of Ternary Heap
Ternary heaps find applications in various algorithms and data structures. They are useful in priority queues, where elements with higher priorities are given precedence.
Time Complexity
The time complexity of basic operations on a ternary heap is as follows:
– Insertion: O(log3n)
– Deletion: O(log3n)
– Extracting Maximum/Minimum: O(log3n)
Conclusion
In conclusion, a ternary heap is a data structure that falls under the category of heap data structures. It differs from binary heaps by having three child nodes per parent node.
Ternary heaps are used for maintaining priority queues efficiently and have operations such as insertion, deletion, and extraction of maximum or minimum values. Understanding different types of heaps can help us choose the most suitable data structure for our specific needs.