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First page of Four-arm polyominoes in Golomb's hierarchy: A complete classification with Lean verification

Four-arm polyominoes in Golomb's hierarchy: A complete classification with Lean verification

Angel Ivanov Raychev

math.CO Sep 12, 2026 · v1
A Lean 4 development verifies the complete tiling classification of four-arm polyominoes, including interpreting finite symbolic certificates as statements about infinite tilings.
We classify the polyominoes obtained by adjoining four straight arms to a single square, allowing zero arm lengths, according to their ability to tile rectangles, half-strips, bent strips, quadrants, strips, half-planes, and the plane. We also classify their ability to tile an integer enlargement of themselves. Tiles occupy whole square-grid cells; translations, rotations, and reflections are permitted. Exactly five capability profiles occur. For the family $P(n,1,1,0)$, the rectangle profile holds for $n\le3$ and the bent-strip profile, with no half-strip or rep-tiling, for every $n\ge4$. A cross with four positive arms tiles the plane precisely when two opposite arms have length one; it never tiles a half-plane. Explicit periodic constructions and geometric obstructions are combined with finite symbolic case certificates. A Lean 4 development verifies the full classification for every natural four-tuple, including the interpretation of the certificates as statements about arbitrary infinite tilings. The account incorporates the author's 2020–2021 L- and T-polyomino work, reconstructs Dahlke's gun argument, and documents the subsequent AI-assisted proof development and formalization.

Polyominoes formed by adjoining four straight arms to a central square are classified according to their ability to tile rectangles, half-strips, bent strips, quadrants, strips, half-planes, the plane, and integer self-enlargements. Determining these tiling capabilities for an infinite parametric family requires constructions and obstructions valid without bounds on parameters.

The family P(a,b,c,d) is analyzed with tiles occupying whole grid cells under translations, rotations, and reflections. Explicit periodic lattice constructions establish positive capabilities, while geometric arguments and finite symbolic case certificates (obstruction trees) establish negative ones. A soundness theorem justifies interpreting finite certificates as statements about arbitrary infinite tilings. A Lean 4 development verifies the full classification for every natural four-tuple, including certificate interpretation.

Exactly five capability profiles occur: rectangle, bent strip, strip, plane-only, and non-tiler. For P(n,1,1,0), the rectangle profile holds for n<=3 and the bent-strip profile for n>=4. A four-positive-arm cross tiles the plane precisely when two opposite arms have length one, and never tiles a half-plane. The Lean artifact checks explicit witnesses (e.g., all 552 cells of the 92-copy Y-hexomino rectangle) and the symbolic obstruction trees.

ProfileRRepHSBSQSHPPlane
Rectangleyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes
Bent strip–––yesyesyesyesyes
Strip–––––yesyesyes
Plane only–––––––yes
Non-tiler––––––––
Capability profiles for the classified families