Perfect binary tree ($n=2^{h+1}-1$)

A nonempty binary tree in which every level, including the deepest, contains all its possible vertices. Equivalently, it is a full binary tree whose leaves are all at the same graph distance from the root of a tree.^[ref]

Every perfect binary tree is both a full binary tree and a complete binary tree; the five-vertex example above shows that the converse fails even when both properties hold. These definitions fix the terminology used here.

For height of a binary tree $h\ge 0$, the level sizes are $1,2,4,\dots ,2^h$, giving $n=2^{h+1}-1$ by a geometric series. There are $2^h$ leaves. The seven-vertex example has level sizes $1,2,4$ and height of a binary tree $2$; the single-vertex binary tree is already perfect, with $h=0$. More generally, joining two perfect binary trees of equal height of a binary tree under a fresh root of a tree gives the next such shape. Equal heights are essential: fullness alone allows unequal leaf distances. A perfect binary tree realizes the maximum number of vertices for its height of a binary tree, making the exponential capacity behind short lookup graph paths visible.

// Target: probability-and-statistics.bigb