Automata Language & Theory (ALC)

Introduction to Automata Theory / Automata Language & Computation / Theory of Computation by PATHAN AHMED KHAN

Automata Theory is a branch of computer science that deals with designing abstract self propelled computing devices that follow a predetermined sequence of operations automatically.

An automaton with a finite number of states is called a Finite Automaton.

The term "Automata" is derived from the Greek word "αὐτόματα" which means "self-acting". An automaton (Automata in plural) is an abstract self-propelled computing device which follows a predetermined sequence of operations automatically.

An automaton with a finite number of states is called a Finite Automaton (FA) or Finite State Machine (FSM).

Formal definition of a Finite Automaton:

An automaton can be represented by a 5-tuple (Q, ∑, δ, q0, F), where −

Q is a finite set of states.

∑ is a finite set of symbols, called the alphabet of the automaton.

δ is the transition function.

q0 is the initial state from where any input is processed (q0 ∈ Q).

F is a set of final state/states of Q (F ⊆ Q).

Related Terminologies:

Alphabet:

Definition − An alphabet is any finite set of symbols.

Example − ∑ = {a, b, c, d} is an alphabet set where ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, and ‘d’ are symbols.

String:

Definition − A string is a finite sequence of symbols taken from ∑.

Example − ‘cabcad’ is a valid string on the alphabet set ∑ = {a, b, c, d}

Length of a String:

Definition − It is the number of symbols present in a string. (Denoted by |S|).

Examples −

If S = ‘cabcad’, |S|= 6

If |S|= 0, it is called an empty string (Denoted by λ or ε)

Kleene Star:

Definition − The Kleene star, ∑*, is a unary operator on a set of symbols or strings, ∑, that gives the infinite set of all possible strings of all possible lengths over ∑ including λ.

Representation − ∑* = ∑0 ∪ ∑1 ∪ ∑2 ∪……. where ∑p is the set of all possible strings of length p.

Example − If ∑ = {a, b}, ∑* = {λ, a, b, aa, ab, ba, bb,………..}

Kleene Closure / Plus:

Definition − The set ∑+ is the infinite set of all possible strings of all possible lengths over ∑ excluding λ.

Representation − ∑+ = ∑1 ∪ ∑2 ∪ ∑3 ∪…….

∑+ = ∑* − { λ }

Example − If ∑ = { a, b } , ∑+ = { a, b, aa, ab, ba, bb,………..}

Prefix and Suffix of a string:

Prefix String means number of leading symbols of that String.

Example:

String is “abc”

Prefix of a String is: ε, a, ab, abc.