The subdirectly irreducible algebras in the variety generated by graph algebras

Abstract

We show that every non-trivial subdirectly irreducible algebra in the variety generated by graph algebras is either a two-element left zero semigroup or a graph algebra itself. We characterize all the subdirectly irreducible algebras in this variety. From this we derive an example of a groupoid (graph algebra) that generates a variety with NP-complete membership problem. This is an improvement over the result of Z. Szekely who constructed an algebra with similar properties in the signature of two binary operations.