Find cycle in matrix
Last updated: August 21, 2025
Quick Overview
Given a 2D matrix consisting of characters, determine if there exists a cycle in the matrix where a cycle is defined as a path of adjacent cells (horizontally or vertically) that starts and ends at the same cell. The function should return true if a cycle exists and false otherwise.
Anthropic
August 21, 202516
11
1,059 solved
Given a 2D matrix consisting of characters, determine if there exists a cycle in the matrix where a cycle is defined as a path of adjacent cells (horizontally or vertically) that starts and ends at the same cell. The function should return true if a cycle exists and false otherwise.
Coding interviews at Anthropic focus on problem-solving approach as much as the final solution. The interviewer wants to see you break down the problem, consider edge cases, and optimize iteratively. Communication throughout the process is key.
What the Interviewer Expects
- Identify the correct data structure and algorithm for the problem
- Write clean, bug-free code with proper variable naming
- Analyze time and space complexity correctly
- Handle basic edge cases (empty input, single element)
- Communicate your thought process while coding
Key Topics to Cover
How to Approach This
- Clarify input constraints and edge cases before writing code.
- Walk through your approach verbally and confirm with the interviewer before coding.
- Start with a brute force solution, then optimize. Mention time and space complexity.
- Test your solution with examples, including edge cases like empty input or duplicates.
- Consider common patterns: sliding window, two pointers, hash map, BFS/DFS, dynamic programming.
Possible Follow-up Questions
- Can you optimize the space complexity of your solution?
- How would you modify your solution to handle streaming input?
- What is the worst-case input for your solution?
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Problem Analysis
To determine if there exists a cycle in a 2D matrix of characters, we can treat the matrix as a graph where each cell is a node, and edges exist between adjacent cells (up, down, left, right). A cycle...
Approach
- DFS Function: Implement a DFS function that takes the current cell coordinates, previous cell coordinates (to avoid going back immediately), and a visited set to track visited cells.
- **Bas...
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