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LeetCode: Trees II DFS BFS

LeetCode: Trees II DFS BFS
57 min read
#data structures and algorithms
Table Of Contents

Tree Intro

What is a Tree

Trees are hierarchical data structures representing relationships between entities, often in a parent-child format.

Tree Characteristics

Trees are a special type of graph, characterized by:

  1. Nodes: The entities (ex: values, objects)

  2. Edges: The connections between the entities. A tree with n nodes has n - 1 edges.

  3. Root: The top-most node, with no parent

  4. Leaves: Nodes with no children

  5. Height: The number of edges on the longest path from the root to a leaf

  6. Depth: The number of edges from the root to a specific node

  7. No Cycles: Trees do not contain cycles

  8. Single Paths: Trees have exactly one path between any two nodes

      1
     / \
    2   3
       / \
      4   5

Tree Representations

Trees can be represented in multiple formats:

  1. Adjacency Matrix: Used for general trees or graphs

  2. Parent Array: Store each child -> parent, in an array

  3. Linked Node Structure: Common in Binary Trees (TreeNode with left and right)

For full notes on representations: please see graph representations

Tree Math

Height of a perfect binary tree with n nodes: log(n+1)-1

Nodes in perfect binary tree of height h: 2^(h+1) -1

Max nodes at level l: 2^l

Edges = Nodes - 1

Common Tree Types

  1. Binary Tree: Each node has at most two children left and right. Most LeetCode problems use this form.

  2. Binary Search Tree (BST): Type of binary tree where: Left subtree val < Node val < Right subtree val

Allows efficient search, insertion, and deletion.

  1. Balanced Binary Tree (AVL, Red-Black) Type of binary tree where: Height difference (balance factor) is kept small, ensuring the height stays O(log n).

This prevents BST from degrading to a linked list in worst case

  1. Complete Binary Tree Type of binary tree where: All levels are filled except possibly the last, which is filled from left to right.

  2. Full Binary Tree Type of binary tree where: Each node has either 0 or 2 children

  3. Perfect Binary Tree Type of binary tree where: All internal nodes have 2 children and all leaves are at the same level.

  4. N-ary Tree Type of tree where: Each node can have up to N children

Balanced Trees

Balanced trees are binary search trees that maintain their height close to O(log n) by rebalancing themselves during insertion() and deletion().

Without balancing, a BST can degrade to a linked list: height(O(n)) if the elements are inserted in sorted order

This is done by limiting the height difference (balance factor) between left and right subtrees.

Common Balanced Trees:

  1. AVL Tree: Strict balancing. Balance factor at each node is in [-1, 0, 1]. Rotations restore balance after insert/delete

  2. Red Black Tree: Looser balancing with colour properties. Guarantees height ≤ 2 * log(n+1)

  3. B- Trees / B+ Trees: Multi way balanced trees used in databases and filesystems for efficient range queries

OperationBST (Unbalanced)Balanced BST
SearchO(n)O(log n)
Insert/DeleteO(n)O(log n)

Tree Traversal Overview

Given a Tree, and the task to traverse it, there a two fundamental search strategies that all others stem from.

Depth First Search Traversal (DFS)

Traversal Order: Goes as deep as possible before backtracking (either recursively via function calls or iteratively via stack)

Can process in pre, in, or post order:

Pre: Root -> Left -> Right

In: Left -> Root -> Right

Post: Left -> Right -> Root

Breadth First Search Traversal (BFS)

Traversal Order: Explores nodes level by level

Will queue nodes for next level, count how many exist, and process all nodes for that level by iterating exactly level_size times popping each from the queue, thus popping all nodes for a specific level.

Specialized Traversals

  • Morris Traversal: In order traversal with O(1) extra space by temporarily modifying tree pointers.

  • Threaded Binary Tree: Uses null child pointers to store predecessor/successor pointers to enable O(1) traversal.

Tree Search Rule of Thumb

Pre, In, Post, order traversal -> DFS (recursive usually, iterative stack based)

Level Order Traversal -> BFS (iterative) queue based

Tree Application: DFS Pre Order Recursive One Sided Top Down

Traversal Order: Root -> Left -> Right (or Root -> Right -> Left) Mindset: Process the root as soon as you see it, then traverse into one subtree fully before the other Trick: I'll visit you first, then i'll deal with your kids

Ex: Serialize a Binary Tree Recursive

    def preOrderSerializeRecursive(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> str:
        
        def dfsPreOrder(node):
            # Note:
            # DFS pre order: root -> left -> right

            # Base case: process leaf 
            if not node:
                vals.append("N")
                return
            
            # Process root -> (DFS top down)
            vals.append(str(node.val))
            
            # Note:
            # order of recursive call determines order

            # Recursive call to process -> left -> right, left deepest 
            dfsPreOrder(node.left)
            dfsPreOrder(node.right)

            # could have been: -> right -> left
            # with deep right subtree 
            # dfsPreOrder(node.right)
            # dfsPreOrder(node.left)
        
        # serialized array
        vals = []

        # recursive call at root
        dfsPreOrder(root)

        # join serialized array
        return ",".join(vals)

    # Tree:
    #       1
    #      / \
    #     2   3
    #        / \
    #       4   5
    # Output: "1,2,N,N,3,4,N,N,5,N,N"

Tree Application: DFS Pre Order Iterative One Sided Top Down

Traversal Order: Root -> Left -> Right (or Root -> Right -> Left) Mindset: Process the root as soon as you see it, then traverse into one subtree fully before the other Trick: I'll visit you first, then i'll deal with your kids

Ex: Pre Order Serialize a Binary Tree Iterative

    def preOrderSerializeIterative(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> str:
        # Note:
        # DFS pre order: root -> left -> right

        # Empty Check
        if not root:
            return "N"

        # iteration via stack
        stack = [root]

        # serialized array
        vals = []
        
        while stack:

            # dfs -> pop()
            # bfs -> popleft()
            currRoot = stack.pop()

            # process root ->: if value
            if currRoot:

                # serialize root (dfs pre order top down)
                vals.append(str(currRoot.val))
                
                # Note:
                # order of append determines order

                # Iterative process: -> left -> right
                # append(right), append(left), as pop() will pop(left), pop(right)
                # pop() leads to deep left subtree search 
                stack.append(currRoot.right)
                stack.append(currRoot.left)


                # Could have been -> right -> left
                # leading to deep right subtree search
                # stack.append(currRoot.left)
                # stack.append(currRoot.right)
            
            # process root ->: if leaf
            else:
                # serialize root (dfs pre order top down)
                vals.append("N")
        
        # join serialized array
        return ",".join(vals)

    # Tree:
    #       1
    #      / \
    #     2   3
    #        / \
    #       4   5
    # Output: "1,2,N,N,3,4,N,N,5,N,N"

Tree Application: DFS In Order Recursive One Sided Bottom Up

Traversal Order: Left -> Root -> Right (or Right -> Root -> Left) Mindset: Fully explore one side before paying attention to the root, then move to the other side Trick: I'll finish everything to your left or right before I pay attention to you

Ex: Convert BST to Sorted List Recursive and Validate BST Iterative

    def bstToSortedList(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> List[int]:
        
        # tracks previous value
        prev_val = float("-inf")
            
        def dfsInOrder(node):
            nonlocal prev_val
            
            # Base case: leaf -> no value
            if not node:
                return True
            
            # recursive call to process left subtree
            if not dfsInOrder(node.left):
                return False
            
            # process node (mid-point work)
            if node.val <= prev_val:
                return False

            # set to current value
            prev_val = node.val
            
            # recursive call to process right subtree
            return dfsInOrder(node.right)
        
        # recursive call on root
        return dfsInOrder(root)

        # Tree:
        #       2
        #      / \
        #     1   3
        # isValidBST -> True

Tree Application: DFS In Order Iterative One Sided Bottom Up

Traversal Order: Left -> Root -> Right (or Right -> Root -> Left) Mindset: Fully explore one side before paying attention to the root, then move to the other side Trick: I'll finish everything to your left or right before I pay attention to you

Ex: Convert BST to Sorted List Recursive and Validate BST Iterative

    def isValidBST(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> bool:
        
        # tracks previous value
        prev_val = float("-inf")

        # iteration via stack
        stack = [] 

        # pointer to check for empty case
        curr = root
        
        while stack or curr:
            
            # traverse left subtree of curr:
            # will go as far left as possible
            while curr: 
                # continue traversal down left subtree
                stack.append(curr)
                curr = curr.left
            
            # Exited loop: 
            # reached 'leaf' of left subtree
            #     L
            #  /     \ 
            # leaf    ?
                        
            # process left, node, right:
            # via previous left subtree node 'L' from stack
            curr = stack.pop()

            # validate
            if curr.val <= prev_val:
                return False

            # set to current value
            prev_val = curr.val
            
            # traverse right subtree
            # (which we thus explore left, node and right subtrees again)
            #     L
            #  /     \ 
            # leaf    *here*
            curr = curr.right
        
        return True

    # Tree:
    #       2
    #      / \
    #     1   3
    # isValidBST -> True

Tree Application: DFS Post Order Recursive Two Sided Bottom Up

Traversal Order: Left -> Right -> Root (or Right -> Left -> Root) Mindset: Fully explore both sides before processing the root. Trick: I'll finish everything to your left then right or right then left before I pay attention to you

Ex: Evaluate Expression Tree Recursive and Delete Tree Iterative

    def diameterOfBinaryTree(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:
        
        # global diameter
        diameter = 0

        def dfs(node):
            nonlocal diameter

            # Base case:
            # no width added
            if not node:
                return 0

            # recursive call to process left and right
            left = dfs(node.left)
            right = dfs(node.right)

            # process node
            diameter = max(diameter, left + right)

            # pass width upwards
            return 1 + max(left, right)

        # recursive on root
        dfs(root)

        # return global diameter
        return diameter

    # Tree:
    #         1
    #        / \
    #       2   3
    #      / \
    #     4   5
    # diameterOfBinaryTree -> 3

Tree Application: DFS Post Order Iterative Two Sided Bottom Up

Traversal Order: Left -> Right -> Root (or Right -> Left -> Root) Mindset: Fully explore both sides before processing the root. Trick: I'll finish everything to your left then right or right then left before I pay attention to you

Ex: Evaluate Expression Tree Recursive and Delete Tree Iterative

    def diameterOfBinaryTree(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:

        # Empty check
        if not root:
            return 0

        # global width
        diameter = 0

        # iterative stack
        stack = []

        # 
        curr = root
        lastVisited = None
        depth_map = defaultdict(int)

        while stack or curr:

            # traverse left subtree of curr:
            # will go as far left as possible
            while curr:
                stack.append(curr)
                curr = curr.left

            # check if right subtree exists
            peek = stack[-1]

            # if right subtree exists and hasn't been visited
            if peek.right and lastVisited != peek.right:
                node = peek.right

            # process node
            else:
                stack.pop()

                # grab width of left and right subtree if exists
                left_depth = depth_map.get(peek.left, 0)
                right_depth = depth_map.get(peek.right, 0)

                # node diameter
                diameter = max(diameter, left_depth + right_depth)

                # store node diameter
                depth_map[peek] = 1 + max(left_depth, right_depth)

                # set last visited to current node
                lastVisited = peek

        # return width
        return diameter

    # Tree:
    #         1
    #        / \
    #       2   3
    #      / \
    #     4   5
    # diameterOfBinaryTree -> 3 (path: 4 → 2 → 5 or 4 → 2 → 1 → 3)

Tree Application: BFS Pre Order Across Level For Level Size Based Grouping Full Across Top Down

Traversal Order: Level by Level BFS visits nodes level by level, processing all nodes at a given depth before moving on to the next. Used for level order problems and shortest path calculations in unweighted graphs, as well as scenarios requiring nodes in order of distance from the root.

Ex: Level order traversal of Binary Tree

    def levelOrderIterative(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> List[List[int]]:
        
        # Empty check
        if not root:
            return []

        group = []

        # start with group 1: root
        queue = deque([root])

        while queue:

            # grab size of curr level
            size = len(queue)
            level = []

            # process entire level
            for _ in range(size):

                # grab node of group
                node = queue.popleft()
                level.append(node.val)

                # append next level
                if node.left:
                    queue.append(node.left)
                if node.right:
                    queue.append(node.right)

            # add level group to list of groups
            groups.append(level)

        # return all level groups
        return groups

    # Example:
    # Input Tree:
    #       1
    #      / \
    #     2   3
    #        / \
    #       4   5
    # Output: [[1], [2, 3], [4, 5]]

Tree Application: BFS Pre Order Across Level No Explicit Level Sized Grouping Full Across Top Down

Traversal Order: Level by Level BFS visit nodes in breath first order. However, in some problems we don't process or store the full level at once. Instead we act on nodes individually or in partial groupings (pairs, linked neighbors, etc)

Ex: Invert a Binary Tree

    def invertTree(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> Optional[TreeNode]:
        if not root:
            return None

        # start at root
        queue = deque([root])
        
        while queue:

            # grab nodes sequentially
            node = queue.popleft()
            
            # process node
            node.left, node.right = node.right, node.left
            
            # process left and right subtrees by appending to queue
            if node.left:
                queue.append(node.left)
            if node.right:
                queue.append(node.right)
        
        return root

        # Example:
        # Input Tree:
        #       4
        #      / \
        #     2   7

        # Output Tree:
        #       4
        #      / \
        #     7   2

Tree Application: BFS Pre Order Across Level Distance from Root Full Across Top Down

Traversal Order: Level by Level Distance Tracking: Each level corresponds to one distance step from the root. Used when the problem depends on minimum, maximum or some count depth.

Ex: Minimum Depth of a Binary Tree

    def minDepth(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:
        from collections import deque
        
        # Empty Tree
        if not root:
            return 0
        
        # initialize depth value
        queue = deque([(root, 1)])
        
        while queue:
            
            # grab current depth, increase to children
            node, depth = queue.popleft()
            
            # first leaf found -> min depth 
            if not node.left and not node.right:
                return depth
            
            # iterate to left and right subtrees with updated depth
            if node.left:
                queue.append((node.left, depth + 1))
            if node.right:
                queue.append((node.right, depth + 1))

Tree Application: BFS Pre Order Across Level Non-Standard Level Traversal Non Standard Full Across

Traversal Order: Level by Level (but with non default ordering such as reversed, zigzag, or other patterns) Used when the traversal order of nodes at each level must follow a specific non standard pattern

Ex: Binary Tree Zigzag Level Order Traversal

    def zigzagLevelOrder(root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> List[List[int]]:
        
        # Empty Tree
        if not root:
            return []
        
        groups = []

        # iteration stack
        queue = deque([root])

        # order toggle
        left_to_right = True
        
        while queue:

            # for each level
            size = len(queue)
            level = deque()
            
            # Process all nodes in current level
            for _ in range(size):
                node = queue.popleft()
                
                # append order based on pattern
                if left_to_right:
                    level.append(node.val)
                else:
                    level.appendleft(node.val)
                
                # iterate by appending left and right subtrees
                if node.left:
                    queue.append(node.left)
                if node.right:
                    queue.append(node.right)
            
            # flip order for next level
            left_to_right = not left_to_right  

            # add to groups            
            groups.append(list(level))

        return groups

    # Example:
    # Input Tree:
    #       1
    #      / \
    #     2   3
    #    / \   \
    #   4   5   6

    # Output: [[1], [3, 2], [4, 5, 6]]

Tree Application: BST Guided Recursive Traversal

Traversal Order: Top down traversal pruning half the tree at each step based on BST property Mindset: Use BST ordering to decide which subtree to recurse into Trick: Like binary search, narrow search space by recursively exploring only one subtree.

Ex: Lowest Common Ancestor in BST Recursive

    def lowestCommonAncestor(root: TreeNode, p: TreeNode, q: TreeNode) -> TreeNode:
    
        # If both nodes smaller than root, recurse left subtree
        if p.val < root.val and q.val < root.val:
            return lowestCommonAncestor(root.left, p, q)

        # If both nodes greater than root, recurse right subtree
        elif p.val > root.val and q.val > root.val:
            return lowestCommonAncestor(root.right, p, q)
        
        # Otherwise, root is split point and LCA
        else:
            return root

Tree Application: BST Guided Iterative Traversal

Traversal Order: Top down traversal pruning half the tree at each step based on BST property Mindset: Use BST ordering to decide which subtree to iterate into Trick: Like binary search, narrow search space by iteratively exploring only one subtree.

Ex: Lowest Common Ancestor in BST Iterative

    def lowestCommonAncestor(root: TreeNode, p: TreeNode, q: TreeNode) -> TreeNode:
        curr = root

        while curr:
            # If both nodes smaller, go left
            if p.val < curr.val and q.val < curr.val:
                curr = curr.left

            # If both nodes greater, go right
            elif p.val > curr.val and q.val > curr.val:
                curr = curr.right
            
            # Else, current node is LCA
            else:
                return curr

226. Invert Binary Tree ::2:: - Easy

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

Given the root of a binary tree, invert the tree, and return its root.

Example InputOutput
root = [4,2,7,1,3,6,9][4,7,2,9,6,3,1]
root = [2,1,3][2,3,1]
root = [][]

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [0, 100]

-100 ≤ Node.val ≤ 100

Abstraction

Invert the binary tree.

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force:

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Recursive DFS Post Order Pass Up Inverted Subtrees - Tree/DFS Post Order Recursive Two Sided Bottom Up

    def invertTree(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> Optional[TreeNode]:
        
        # Post Order: (left -> right -> root) 
        #   1. Process left node: invert children nodes
        #   2. Process right node: invert children nodes
        #   3. Process root node: invert left and right nodes

        # Base case: reached leaf of tree, no swap, return None
        if not root:
            return None

        # Recursive call to process (left -> right) subtrees
        # could have been (right -> left) also
        leftSubtree = self.invertTree(root.left)
        rightSubtree = self.invertTree(root.right)

        # Process root: Swap left and right nodes
        root.left = rightSubtree
        root.right = leftSubtree

        # Return inverted subtree to previous root call

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(h), O(log n) for balanced tree
        return root

Solution 2: [BFS] Iterative BFS Pre Order Full Level Node Inversion - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level For Level Size Based Grouping Full Across Top Down

    def invertTree(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> Optional[TreeNode]:
        
        # BFS Iterative level by level: 
        #   1. Process Root: swap left and right
        #   2. Iterative Left And Right: children will be swapped after popped from deque
        
        # Empty Case:
        # tree is empty, no swaps needed
        if not root:
            return None
        
        # BFS Iterative Queue:
        queue = deque([root])
        

        while queue:

            # Number of nodes at depth
            size = len(queue)

            # Process all nodes in current level
            for _ in range(size):

                # Pop root node from left most of stack
                node = queue.popleft()
                
                # Process Root Node:
                # Invert left and right nodes
                node.left, node.right = node.right, node.left
                
                # Prepare Next Level:
                # Append the next level of nodes to the stack,
                # will not affect the current level processing 
                # as we have previously determined the number of nodes in the level 
                # and thus the number of nodes to be process
                if node.left:
                    queue.append(node.left)
                if node.right:
                    queue.append(node.right)
        
        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return root
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

111. Minimum Depth of Binary Tree ::2:: - Easy

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

Given a binary tree, find its minimum depth. The minimum depth is the number of nodes along the shortest path from the root node down to the nearest leaf node. Note: A leaf is a node with no children.

Example InputOutput
root = [3,9,20,null,null,15,7]1
root = [2,null,3,null,4,null,5,null,6]5

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [0, 10^5]

-1000 ≤ Node.val ≤ 1000

Abstraction

Find the short path from root to leaf

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force:

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Recursive DFS Post Order Pass Up Minimum Leaf Depth - Tree/DFS Post Order Recursive Two Sided Bottom Up

    def minDepth(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:

        # Post Order: (left -> right -> root)
        #   1. Process left node: compute its minimum depth
        #   2. Process right node: compute its minimum depth
        #   3. Process root node: combine into this node's minimum depth

        # Check:
        # reached past a leaf, empty subtree contributes no depth
        if not root:
            return 0

        # Recursive call to process (left -> right) subtrees
        leftDepth = self.minDepth(root.left)
        rightDepth = self.minDepth(root.right)

        # Check:
        # a node with only one child is NOT a leaf — minDepth must not
        # stop here, so we're forced down the side that actually exists
        if not root.left:
            return rightDepth + 1
        if not root.right:
            return leftDepth + 1

        # Check:
        # true leaf reached on both sides, or both children have subtrees —
        # take whichever side reaches a real leaf first
        subtreeMinDepth = min(leftDepth, rightDepth)

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(h), O(log n) for balanced tree
        return subtreeMinDepth + 1

Solution 2: [BFS] Iterative BFS Pre Order Early Exit First Leaf Found - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level For Level Size Based Grouping Full Across Top Down

    def minDepth(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:

        # BFS Iterative level by level:
        #   1. Process Root: check if it's a true leaf (no children at all)
        #   2. Iterative Left And Right: enqueue children for the next level
        #   3. Early Exit: the FIRST leaf found via BFS is guaranteed to be
        #      at the minimum depth, since BFS explores level by level —
        #      no deeper leaf could possibly be found first

        # Check:
        # tree is empty, no depth to measure
        if not root:
            return 0

        # BFS Iterative Queue: holds (node, depth) pairs
        queue = deque([(root, 1)])

        while queue:

            # Pop next node to process
            node, depth = queue.popleft()

            # Check:
            # true leaf — no left AND no right child — this is guaranteed
            # to be the minimum depth, return immediately without
            # processing the rest of the tree
            if not node.left and not node.right:
                return depth

            # Check:
            # enqueue children that exist, carrying their depth forward
            if node.left:
                queue.append((node.left, depth + 1))
            if node.right:
                queue.append((node.right, depth + 1))

        # overall: tc O(n) worst case, better with early exit
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return 0
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

104. Maximum Depth of Binary Tree ::3:: - Easy

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

A binary tree's maximum depth is the number of nodes along the longest path from the root node down to the farthest leaf node.

Example InputOutput
root = [3,9,20,null,null,15,7]3
root = [1,null,2]2

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [0, 104]

-100 ≤ Node.val ≤ 100

Abstraction

Find the max depth of a binary tree.

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force:

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Recursive DFS Post Order Pass Up Subtree Depth - Tree/DFS Post Order Recursive Two Sided Bottom Up

    def maxDepth(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:
                
        # Post Order: (left -> right -> root)
        #   Recursive into both children and pass up their depth,
        #   then process root by comparing max depth of left and right subtrees
        
        # Empty Case: 
        # tree is a leaf, no height
        if root == None:
            return 0
        
        # Recursive call to process left and right subtrees
        leftDepth = self.maxDepth(root.left)
        rightDepth = self.maxDepth(root.right)
        
        # Process Root:
        # compare max height between left and right, add 1
        rootDepth = 1 + max(leftDepth, rightDepth)

        # Return max height of subtree

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return rootDepth
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [BFS] Iterative BFS Pre Order Full Level Global Depth + Completed Level Adds to Depth - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level For Level Size Based Grouping Full Across Top Down

    def maxDepth(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> int:

        # BFS Iterative Level By Level: 
        # Process root level -> process left and right level
        #   1. Process Root: pop node from deque and do nothing
        #   2. Queue up left and right nodes to process them in the next level
        #   3. After processing all nodes in the current level, add +1 to depth counter to account for this level
        
        # Empty Case: 
        # tree is a leaf, no height
        if not root:
            return 0
        
        # BFS Iterative Queue:
        queue = deque([root])

        # Global depth
        globalDepth = 0
        
        while queue:

            # Number of nodes at current depth
            size = len(queue)

            # Process all nodes in current level
            for _ in range(size):

                # Process and do nothing
                node = queue.popleft()

                # Append the next level of nodes to the stack
                if node.left:
                    queue.append(node.left)
                if node.right:
                    queue.append(node.right)

            # After popping all nodes in the current level,
            # we add +1 to depth counter to account for this level in the total depth
            globalDepth += 1
        
        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return globalDepth
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

100. Same Tree ::2:: - Easy

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

Given the roots of two binary trees p and q, write a function to check if they are the same or not. Two binary trees are considered the same if they are structurally identical, and the nodes have the same value.

Example InputOutput
p = [1,2,3], q = [1,2,3]true
p = [1,2], q = [1,null,2]false
p = [1,2,1], q = [1,1,2]false

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [0, 100]

-104 ≤ Node.val ≤ 104

Abstraction

Determine if two different binary trees match completely.

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force: (iterative)

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Pre Order DFS Recursive Early Root Stop - Tree/DFS Pre Order Recursive One Sided Top Down

    def isSameTree(self, p: Optional[TreeNode], q: Optional[TreeNode]) -> bool:
        
        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        # For any 2 nodes: 
        #    if both nodes are 'None' => trees match
        #    if only one node is 'None' => trees differ
        #    if values mismatch => trees differ
        #    if values match => recurse into left and right subtrees to continue validation

        # Check:
        # both nodes are leaves/None, valid match
        if not p and not q:
            return True

        # Check: 
        # only one node is 'None', invalid
        if not p or not q:
            return False

        # Check: 
        # values differ, invalid
        if p.val != q.val:
            return False
        
        # Check:
        # The two nodes match, recurse into children to continue validation,
        # if left subtree doesn't match, 'and' will skip the right subtree call, short circuit and return False early
        subTreeMatch = self.isSameTree(p.left, q.left) and self.isSameTree(p.right, q.right)
        
        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(log n) for balanced / O(n) for skewed tree
        return subTreeMatch
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [BFS] Iterative BFS Early Root Stop - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level No Explicit Level Sized Grouping Full Across Top Down

    def isSameTree(self, p: Optional[TreeNode], q: Optional[TreeNode]) -> bool:
        
        # BFS Iterative level by level:
        # For any 2 nodes: 
        #    if both nodes are 'None' => trees match
        #    if only one node is 'None' => trees differ
        #    if values mismatch => trees differ
        #    if values match => recurse into left and right subtrees to continue validation
        
        # BFS Iterative Queue:
        queue = deque([(p, q)])
        
        while queue:

            # Pop pair of nodes to compare
            root1, root2 = queue.popleft()
            
            # Check:
            # both nodes are leaves, valid match
            if not root1 and not root2:
                continue
            
            # Check:
            # only one node is None, invalid match
            if not root1 or not root2
                return False
            
            # Check:
            # values differ, invalid
            if root1.val != root2.val:
                return False
            
            # Check:
            # The two nodes match, recurse into children to continue validation
            queue.append((root1.left, root2.left))
            queue.append((root1.right, root2.right))
        
        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(log n) for balanced / O(n) for skewed tree
        return True
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

101. Symmetric Tree ::2:: - Easy

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

Given the root of a binary tree, check whether it is a mirror of itself (i.e., symmetric around its center). Follow up: Could you solve it both recursively and iteratively?

Example InputOutput
root = [1,2,2,3,4,4,3]true
root = [1,2,2,null,3,null,3]false

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [1, 1000].

-100 ≤ Node.val ≤ 100

Abstraction

Determine if the mirror of the tree matches. This is structurally 100. Same Tree, with the differences being instead of walking p.left q.left and p.right q.right, symmetry requires the crossed pairing left.left right.right and left.right right.left.

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force: (iterative)

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Recursive DFS Pre Order Mirror Comparison Two Sided Top Down - Tree/DFS Pre Order Recursive Two Sided Top Down

    def isSymmetric(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> bool:

        # Symmetric Tree:
        #             1
        #          /     \
        #        2         2
        #      /   \     /   \
        #     3     4    4    3
        
        # Note: 
        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        # We validate symmetry by passing the flipped node:
        #        left.left  =? right.right   (outer pair)
        #        left.right =? right.left    (inner pair)


        def isMirror(left, right):

            # Both are leaves => valid
            if left == None and right == None:
                return True

            # Only one is a leaf => invalid
            if not left or not right:
                return False

            # Values do not match => invalid
            if left.val != right.val:
                return False

            # Values match => valid

            # Validate the left and right subtrees 
            # by checking the next inner and outer pairs:
            #       - inner = left.right, right.left
            #       - outer = left.left, right.right 
            return isMirror(left.left, right.right) and isMirror(left.right, right.left)

        # Empty Check:
        # empty trees are symmetrical
        if not root:
            return True

        # Validates the root's left and right subtrees,
        # if these are mirror then tree is mirrored
        res = isMirror(root.left, root.right)

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(h) unbalanced / O(log n) balanced tree
        return isMirror(root.left, root.right)
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [BFS] Iterative BFS Pre Order Mirror Pair Queue - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level Paired Node Comparison Top Down

    def isSymmetric(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> bool:

        # Note: 
        # BFS Iterative level by level:
        #   We validate symmetry by enqueueing the flipped node:
        #        left.left  =? right.right   (outer pair)
        #        left.right =? right.left    (inner pair)

        # Check:
        # empty tree is trivially symmetric
        if not root:
            return True

        # BFS Iterative Queue: 
        # Initialize with root's left and right subtrees
        queue = deque([(root.left, root.right)])

        while queue:

            # Pop pair of inner or outer nodes
            left, right = queue.popleft()

            # Both are leaves => valid
            if left == None and right == None:
                return True

            # Only one is a leaf => invalid
            if not left or not right:
                return False

            # Values do not match => invalid
            if left.val != right.val:
                return False

            # Values match => valid

            # Enqueue the left and right subtrees 
            # by enqueueing the next inner and outer pairs:
            #       - inner = left.right, right.left
            #       - outer = left.left, right.right 
            queue.append((left.left, right.right))
            queue.append((left.right, right.left))

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return True
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

112. Path Sum ::2:: - Easy

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

Given the root of a binary tree and an integer targetSum, return true if the tree has a root-to-leaf path such that adding up all the values along the path equals targetSum. A leaf is a node with no children.

Example InputOutput
root = [5,4,8,11,null,13,4,7,2,null,null,null,1], targetSum = 22true
root = [1,2,3], targetSum = 5false
root = [], targetSum = 0false

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [0, 5000].

-1000 ≤ Node.val ≤ 1000 -1000 ≤ targetSum ≤ 1000

Abstraction

Check if a root to leaf path exists that adds to target

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force: (iterative)

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Recursive DFS Pre Order Remaining Sum Pass Down - Tree/DFS Pre Order Recursive One Sided Top Down

    def hasPathSum(self, root: Optional[TreeNode], targetSum: int) -> bool:

        # Note:
        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        #   Simply descend root to leaf, subtracting the nodes value from the 
        #   remaining count, and pass the remaining count as we traverse downwards.
        #   Target only counts if node has no left or right children.

        # Empty Check:
        # reached past a leaf, target not reached
        if not root:
            return False

        # Update Remaining:
        remaining = targetSum - root.val

        # Check:
        # Target found if node is a leaf and remaining is 0
        if not root.left and not root.right:
            return remaining == 0

        # Target not found, continue descent

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(h) unbalanced / O(log n) balanced tree
        return self.hasPathSum(root.left, remaining) or self.hasPathSum(root.right, remaining)
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [BFS] Iterative BFS Pre Order Mirror Pair Queue - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level Paired Node Comparison Top Down

    def hasPathSum(self, root: Optional[TreeNode], targetSum: int) -> bool:

        # Note:
        # BFS Iterative level by level:
        #   Simply descend root to leaf, subtracting the nodes value from the 
        #   remaining count, and pass the remaining count as we traverse downwards.
        #   Target only counts if node has no left or right children.


        # Empty Check:
        # reached past a leaf, target not reached
        if not root:
            return False

        # BFS Iterative Queue: 
        # holds current node and remaining value
        queue = deque([(root, targetSum - root.val)])

        while queue:

            # Pop next node
            node, remaining = queue.popleft()

            # Check:
            # Target found if node is a leaf and remaining is 0
            if not node.left and not node.right:
                if remaining == 0:
                    return True
                continue

            # Target not found, continue descent
            # Enqueue left and right children with updated remaining
            if node.left:
                queue.append((node.left, remaining - node.left.val))
            if node.right:
                queue.append((node.right, remaining - node.right.val))

        # Queue exhausted, target not found

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(h) unbalanced / O(log n) balanced tree
        return False
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

1448. Count Good Nodes in Binary Tree ::2:: - Medium

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

Given a binary tree root, a node X in the tree is
named good if in the path from root to X there are no nodes with a value greater than X. Return the number of good nodes in the binary tree.

Example InputOutput
root = [3,1,4,3,null,1,5]4
root = [3,3,null,4,2]3
root = [1]1

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the root tree is in the range [1, 105].

Each node's value is between [-104, 104]

Abstraction

Given a tree, a node is good if in the path between itself and the root there is no node that is larger than it.

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force: iterative

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: DFS Pre Order Recursive Pass Down Max Value Seen So Far - Tree/DFS Pre order Traversal

    def goodNodes(self, root: TreeNode) -> int:

        # Note:
        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        # same as max of tree, but instead of passing max upwards,
        # we pass max downwards to children to check if current node is a good node

        def dfs(node, maxSoFar):

            # Empty check:
            # no value to compare against,no good nodes
            if not node:
                return 0
            
            # Check:
            # if curr node is less than current max, not a good node, return 0
            if node.val < maxSoFar:
                good = 0
            else:
                good = 1
            
            # Update max seen so far to pass down to children
            newMax = max(maxSoFar, node.val)
            
            # Recurse into left and right subtrees, passing down the updated max
            good += dfs(node.left, newMax)
            good += dfs(node.right, newMax)
            
            # Return number of good nodes found in this subtree
            return good
        
        # Total good nodes found in tree starting from root
        totalGoodNodes = dfs(root, root.val)

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return totalGoodNodes
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: BFS Iterative Pass (Root, maxSoFar) Tuple Down - Tree/DFS Pre order Traversal

    def goodNodes(self, root: TreeNode) -> int:
        
        # Note:
        # DFS pre order: (root -> left -> right)
        # 1. Set maxSoFar to root and pass down to children while updating
        # 2. If node value is >= maxSoFar, it's a good node, add to count

        # global good count
        goodCount = 0

        # BFS Iterative Dequeue:
        # initialize with root as both the max value 
        # and for the node value we are comparing for a good node stack
        queue = deque([(root, root.val)])
        
        while queue:

            # Number of nodes at depth
            size = len(queue)

            # Process all nodes in current level
            for _ in range(size):

                # Pop root node and max value seen so far from left most of stack
                (root, maxSoFar) = queue.popleft()
                
                # Check:
                # if curr node is greater than the current max, its a good node
                if root.val >= maxSoFar:
                    goodCount += 1
                
                # Update max:
                newMax = max(maxSoFar, root.val)
                
                # Append children to queue with updated max value seen so far
                if root.left:
                    queue.append((root.left, newMax))
                if root.right:
                    queue.append((root.right, newMax))
        
        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return goodCount
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

987. Vertical Order Traversal of a Binary Tree ::1:: - Hard

Topics: Hash Table, Tree, Depth First Search, Breath First Search, Sorting, Binary Tree

Intro

Given the root of a binary tree, calculate the vertical order traversal of the binary tree. For each node at position (row, col), its left and right children will be at positions (row + 1, col - 1) and (row + 1, col + 1) respectively. The root of the tree is at (0, 0) The vertical order traversal of a binary tree is a list of top-to-bottom orderings for each column index starting from the leftmost column and ending on the rightmost column. There may be multiple nodes in the same row and same column. In such a case, sort these nodes by their values. Return the vertical order traversal of the binary tree.

Example InputOutput
root = [3,9,20,null,null,15,7][[9],[3,15],[20],[7]]
root = [1,2,3,4,5,6,7][[4],[2],[1,5,6],[3],[7]]
root = [1,2,3,4,6,5,7][[4],[2],[1,5,6],[3],[7]]

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [1, 1000].

0 ≤ Node.val ≤ 1000

Abstraction

something!

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force:

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Coordinate Assignment + Sort - Tree/DFS Pre Order Recursive Top Down

    def verticalTraversal(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> List[List[int]]:

        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        #   As we go from parent to children, we keep track
        #   of our coordinates and create nodes (c, r, val).
        #   Root = (row=0, col=0, root.val), and +-1 depending on left or right child,
        #   and increase for the depth.
        #   We then collect all nodes as (col, row, val) to then sort them 
        #   to account for ties during the final column grouping step

        # Nodes: collects (col, row, val) triplets for every node in the tree
        nodes = []

        def dfs(node, row, col):

            # Check:
            # node is None, nothing to record, stop descending
            if not node:
                return

            # Check:
            # record this node's coordinates and value before descending further
            nodes.append((col, row, node.val))

            # Check:
            # descend into left/right children, adjusting coordinates accordingly
            dfs(node.left, row + 1, col - 1)
            dfs(node.right, row + 1, col + 1)

        dfs(root, 0, 0)

        # Sort:
        #   Take all nodes as (col, row, val) and sort them 
        #   to account for ties during the final column grouping step
        nodes.sort()

        # Check:
        # group sorted nodes by column, starting a new sublist each time
        # the column changes
        res = []

        # Tracking what column we are on,
        # iterating left to right, top to bottom, and value ascending
        prevCol = float('-inf')

        # Iterate through sorted nodes and now group them by column
        for col, row, val in nodes:

            # If we hit a new group, add new list
            if col != prevCol:
                res.append([])
                prevCol = col

            # Add node to the newest column, which because of the sort,
            # is the right most in the list 
            res[-1].append(val)

        # overall: tc O(n log n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return res
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [BFS] Coordinate Assignment + Sort - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level For Level Size Based Grouping Full Across Top Down

    def verticalTraversal(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> List[List[int]]:

        # BFS Iterative level by level:
        #   As we go from parent to children, we keep track
        #   of our coordinates and create nodes (c, r, val).
        #   Root = (row=0, col=0, root.val), and +-1 depending on left or right child,
        #   and increase for the depth.
        #   We then collect all nodes as (col, row, val) to then sort them 
        #   to account for ties during the final column grouping step

        # Check:
        # empty tree, nothing to traverse
        if not root:
            return []

        # Nodes: collects (col, row, val) triplets for every node in the tree
        nodes = []

        # BFS Iterative Queue: 
        # holds the tracking (node, row, col)
        queue = deque([(root, 0, 0)])

        while queue:

            # Pop next node and its coordinates
            node, row, col = queue.popleft()

            # Check:
            # record this node's coordinates and value
            nodes.append((col, row, node.val))

            # Check:
            # enqueue children with updated coordinates, only if they exist
            if node.left:
                queue.append((node.left, row + 1, col - 1))
            if node.right:
                queue.append((node.right, row + 1, col + 1))

        # Sort:
        #   Take all nodes as (col, row, val) and sort them 
        #   to account for ties during the final column grouping step
        nodes.sort()

        # Check:
        # group sorted nodes by column, starting a new sublist each time
        # the column changes
        res = []
        
        # Tracking what column we are on,
        # iterating left to right, top to bottom, and value ascending
        prevCol = float('-inf')

        # Iterate through sorted nodes and now group them by column
        for col, row, val in nodes:

            # If we hit a new group, add new list
            if col != prevCol:

                res.append([])
                prevCol = col

            # Add node to the newest column, which because of the sort,
            # is the right most in the list 
            res[-1].append(val)

        # overall: tc O(n log n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return res
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 3: [BFS] BucketSort Coordinate Assignment + Sort - Tree/BFS Pre Order Across Level For Level Size Based Grouping Full Across Top Down

    def verticalTraversal(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> List[List[int]]:

        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        # Idea:
        #    same coordinate assignment as before, but instead of a single
        #    global sort, bucket nodes by column as we go, tracking the
        #    column range so we can lay buckets out in order without
        #    sorting column keys — only sort *within* each bucket

        # cols: maps col -> list of (row, val) pairs landing in that column
        cols = defaultdict(list)
        bounds = [0, 0]  # [min_col, max_col], updated during traversal

        def dfs(node, row, col):

            # Check:
            # node is None, nothing to record, stop descending
            if not node:
                return

            # Check:
            # record this node's (row, val) under its column bucket,
            # and expand the tracked column range if needed
            cols[col].append((row, node.val))
            bounds[0] = min(bounds[0], col)
            bounds[1] = max(bounds[1], col)

            # Check:
            # descend into left/right children, adjusting coordinates accordingly
            dfs(node.left, row + 1, col - 1)
            dfs(node.right, row + 1, col + 1)

        dfs(root, 0, 0)

        # Check:
        # walk columns left to right using the tracked range (no key sort needed),
        # sorting only within each column to resolve (row, val) ties
        res = []
        for col in range(bounds[0], bounds[1] + 1):
            bucket = cols[col]
            bucket.sort()  # by row, then val
            res.append([val for row, val in bucket])

        # overall: tc O(n log n) worst case, O(n + w log b) avg — see table
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return res
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

297. Serialize and Deserialize Binary Tree ::2:: - Hard

Topics: String, Tree, Depth First Search, Breadth First Search, Design, Binary Tree

Intro

Serialization is the process of converting a data structure or object into a sequence of bits so that it can be stored in a file or memory buffer, or transmitted across a network connection link to be reconstructed later in the same or another computer environment. Design an algorithm to serialize and deserialize a binary tree. There is no restriction on how your serialization/deserialization algorithm should work. You just need to ensure that a binary tree can be serialized to a string and this string can be deserialized to the original tree structure. Clarification: The input/output format is the same as how LeetCode serializes a binary tree. ou do not necessarily need to follow this format, so please be creative and come up with different approaches yourself.

Example InputOutput
root = [1,2,3,null,null,4,5][1,2,3,null,null,4,5]
root = [][]

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [1, 104]

-1000 ≤ Node.val ≤ 1000

Abstraction

Create a traversal with null markers to construct the original tree. Null markers solve "where does each subtree end", and pre/post order solve "where does the root sit" for free. So we will create a Pre Order Traversal with Null markers.

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force: iterative

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: DFS Recursive Pre Order + Null Markers - Tree/DFS Pre order Traversal

class Codec:

    # Pre Order Array + Null Markers:

    # To serialize and deserialize we need to solve these two requirements:
    #   - "where does each subtree end"
    #   - "where does the root sit"
    
    # Pre Order + Null Markers Covers Both:
    #   - Pre/post order solve "where does the root sit" for free,
    #     root is always first (pre-order) or always last (post-order),
    #     a fixed position regardless of tree shape.
    #   - Null markers solve "where does each subtree end" — an explicit
    #     sentinel marks every missing child, so the exact size of every
    #     subtree is recoverable from the token stream itself.
    #   - (So for this problem), pre-order + null markers is fully self-sufficient as we get
    #     a fixed root position through pre order and explicit subtree boundaries through Null markers

    #   - (for contrast) In order + known root solves 
    #     "everything to the left of root belongs to the left subtree and vice versa for right" 

    def serialize(self, root):

        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        # Idea:
        #    walk the tree root-first, recording each node's value in visit order
        #    record a sentinel ("N") wherever a child is None, so the exact
        #    shape of the tree can be reconstructed later without ambiguity

        # vals: accumulates the pre-order token stream (values + None markers)
        vals = []

        def dfs(node):

            # Check:
            # node is None, record sentinel marker and stop descending
            if not node:
                vals.append("N")
                return

            # Check:
            # record this node's value before descending into children
            vals.append(str(node.val))

            # Check:
            # descend into left then right subtrees
            dfs(node.left)
            dfs(node.right)

        dfs(root)

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return ",".join(vals)


    def deserialize(self, data):

        # DFS Pre Order: (root -> left -> right)
        # Idea:
        #    tokens were written in pre-order, so replaying them in the same
        #    order reconstructs the same shape: pop one token per call,
        #    "N" means None, otherwise build a node and recurse for its children

        # vals: queue of tokens to consume in the exact order they were written
        vals = deque(data.split(","))

        def dfs():

            # Check:
            # next token is the None sentinel, no node here
            val = vals.popleft()
            if val == "N":
                return None

            # Check:
            # build this node before reconstructing its children,
            # mirroring the pre-order write in serialize()
            node = TreeNode(int(val))

            # Check:
            # rebuild left then right subtrees from the remaining tokens
            node.left = dfs()
            node.right = dfs()

            return node

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return dfs()
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [BFS] Level Order Iterative Queue Based Serialization - Tree/BFS Level Order Iterative

class Codec:

    # Level Order Array + Null Markers:

    # To serialize and deserialize we need to solve these two requirements:
    #   - "where does each subtree end"
    #   - "where does the root sit"

    # Level Order + Null Markers Covers Both:
    #   - Level order solves "where does the root sit" for free,
    #     root is always first — the first value dequeued/enqueued,
    #     a fixed position regardless of tree shape.
    #   - Null markers solve "where does each subtree end" — an explicit
    #     sentinel marks every missing child, so every real node's left
    #     and right slot is recorded (value or "N") in the order discovered,
    #     letting deserialize know exactly which tokens belong to which node.
    #   - (So for this problem), level-order + null markers is fully self-sufficient as we get
    #     a fixed root position through level order and explicit child boundaries through Null markers

    #   - (for contrast) In order + known root solves
    #     "everything to the left of root belongs to the left subtree and vice versa for right"

    def serialize(self, root):

        # BFS Level Order: (level by level, left -> right)
        # Idea:
        #    walk the tree level by level using a queue, recording each
        #    node's value in the order visited. Record a sentinel ("N")
        #    wherever a child is None — but unlike DFS pre-order, we do NOT
        #    enqueue past a None, since level order only ever expands
        #    children of *real* nodes. This still fully captures the shape,
        #    because every real node's left/right slot is recorded
        #    (either a value or "N") in the order it was discovered.

        # Check:
        # empty tree, single sentinel is enough
        if not root:
            return "N"

        # vals: accumulates the level-order token stream (values + None markers)
        vals = []
        queue = deque([root])

        while queue:
            node = queue.popleft()

            # Check:
            # node is None, record sentinel, don't enqueue anything for it,
            # nothing left to explore down this branch
            if not node:
                vals.append("N")
                continue

            # Check:
            # record this node's value, then queue its children
            # (queued even if None, so the None gets its own "N" slot
            # in the correct position relative to its parent)
            vals.append(str(node.val))
            queue.append(node.left)
            queue.append(node.right)

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return ",".join(vals)


    def deserialize(self, data):

        # BFS Level Order: (level by level, left -> right)
        # Idea:
        #    tokens were written level by level, so replay them the same
        #    way: pop one token per queued node to build its left child,
        #    pop the next to build its right child, enqueueing any newly
        #    built (non-None) nodes so their own children get filled in
        #    next. This mirrors the write order in serialize() exactly.

        vals = data.split(",")

        # Check:
        # single sentinel means the original tree was empty
        if vals[0] == "N":
            return None

        # root is always first (fixed position, no searching needed)
        root = TreeNode(int(vals[0]))
        queue = deque([root])
        i = 1

        while queue:
            node = queue.popleft()

            # Check:
            # next token builds node's left child, "N" means no child,
            # nothing gets enqueued for a None so we don't try to
            # expand a subtree that never existed
            if vals[i] != "N":
                node.left = TreeNode(int(vals[i]))
                queue.append(node.left)
            i += 1

            # Check:
            # next token builds node's right child, "N" means no child
            if vals[i] != "N":
                node.right = TreeNode(int(vals[i]))
                queue.append(node.right)
            i += 1

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(n)
        return root

99. Recover Binary Search Tree ::2:: - Medium

Topics: Tree, Depth First Search, Binary Tree

Intro

You are given the root of a binary search tree (BST), where the values of exactly two nodes of the tree were swapped by mistake. Recover the tree without changing its structure. Follow up: A solution using O(n) space is pretty straight-forward. Could you devise a constant O(1) space solution?

Example InputOutput
root = [1,3,null,null,2][3,1,null,null,2]
root = [3,1,4,null,null,2][2,1,4,null,null,3]

Constraints:

The number of nodes in the tree is in the range [2, 1000].

-2^31 ≤ Node.val ≤ 2^31-1

Abstraction

Check if a root to leaf path exists that adds to target

Space & Time Complexity

SolutionTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarkSpace Remark
BugError

Brute Force: (iterative)

AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Find the Bug:

Solution 1: [DFS] Recursive DFS In Order Two Pointer Violation Tracking - Tree/DFS In Order Recursive One Sided Top Down

    def recoverTree(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> None:

        # Note: 
        # DFS In Order: (left -> root -> right)
        #   Traversing a valid BST results in strictly ascending values.
        #   If 2 nodes were swapped, the sequence will contain 1 or 2 violations,
        #   a value smaller than the one right before it.
        #   Track 'prev' as we go to detect violations without ever storing the full
        #   sequence in a list.
        #   'First' will be set to the first violation previous node.
        #   'Second' will be set on the second violation.

        self.first = None
        self.second = None
        self.prev = None

        def dfs(node):

            # Empty Check:
            # no values, return
            if not node:
                return

            # In Order Traversal:
            # will result in strictly ascending, except for the violation
            dfs(node.left)

            # Check:
            # The violation will cause the current value to be smaller than the previous
            if self.prev and self.prev.val > node.val:

                # First violation found: 
                # Prev is standing at node before first violation,
                # set first to prev.
                # first swapped node
                if self.first == None:
                    self.first = self.prev

                # Second will be set for the first and second violation,
                # ending up correct after the second violation:
                self.second = node

            # Check:
            # advance prev before continuing traversal
            self.prev = node

            # Check:
            # descend right last, completing the in-order sequence
            dfs(node.right)

        dfs(root)

        # Check:
        # swap the VALUES (not the nodes themselves) to restore BST order
        # without altering the tree's structure
        self.first.val, self.second.val = self.second.val, self.first.val

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(h), O(log n) for balanced tree
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks

Solution 2: [Morris Traversal] Threaded Tree In Order Two Pointer Violation Tracking [SC Opt] - Tree/Morris In Order Iterative Constant Space

    def recoverTree(self, root: Optional[TreeNode]) -> None:

        # Note:
        # Morris In Order Traversal: (left -> root -> right), O(1) space
        #   Traversing a valid BST results in strictly ascending values.
        #   If 2 nodes were swapped, the sequence will contain 1 or 2 violations,
        #   a value smaller than the one right before it.
        #   We avoid a recursion stack or an explicit stack by temporarily
        #   threading the tree using Morris Traversal by using unused right pointers


        first = second = prev = None
        node = root

        while node:

            # No Left Subtree:
            # safe to process this node directly, move right nothing left to thread
            if not node.left:

                # Check:
                # same violation detection as Solution 1
                if prev and prev.val > node.val:
                    if first == None:
                        first = prev
                    # Second will be set for the first and second violation,
                    # ending up correct after the second violation:
                    second = node

                prev = node
                node = node.right

            # Left Subtree:
            else:

                # In Order Iteration Results In Ascending:
                # grab left and the rightmost node in left's subtree 
                predecessor = node.left
                while predecessor.right and predecessor.right != node:
                    predecessor = predecessor.right

                # Traversed the left's right subtree and found the rightmost unused right point,
                # will use this to thread back to node
                if predecessor.right == None:
                    # thread, and iterate to left subtree
                    predecessor.right = node
                    node = node.left

                # Thread already exists, 
                # we've returned here after finishing the left subtree, 
                # remove the thread to restore the tree, process `node`, then move right
                else:

                    # Revert temp right point thread to None
                    predecessor.right = None

                    # 
                    if prev and prev.val > node.val:

                        # First and second violation
                        if first == None:
                            first = prev

                        # Second will be set for the first and second violation,
                        # ending up correct after the second violation:
                        second = node

                    # Continue iteration
                    prev = node
                    node = node.right

        # Swap the violations values and restore the tree
        first.val, second.val = second.val, first.val

        # overall: tc O(n)
        # overall: sc O(1)
AspectTime ComplexitySpace ComplexityTime RemarksSpace Remarks