Quicksort is one of the important sorting algorithms. Hoare [1] proposed an algorithm depended on selecting an arbitrary element from the array. This element called a pivot element such that Quicksort algorithm used for parting the arrays into two sub-arrays: those smaller than the pivot and those larger than the pivot [2] .

After that Quicksort depends on recursive sorting of the two subarrays. Later Sedgewick studied several variants.

Regnier [3] studied the limiting distribution of the number of comparisons done by Quicksort algorithm when suitably normalized. It converges with uncertain unknown limit. The first accounts were computed by Hennequin who proved that this distribution is not a normal distribution. The limiting distribution is characterized by a stochastic fixed point equation [4] [5] . The cost of the Quicksort algorithm depends on the position of the selected pivot. There are many cases to choose the pivot element. The worst-case, the best-case and the average case express the performance of the algorithm. We will discuss some of them and for more details; we refer to Ragab [6] and [7] . The worst-case occurs when the pivot is the smallest (or largest) element at partitioning on array of size n, yielding one empty sub-array, one element (pivot) in the correct place and one sub-array of size n − 1. So, the two sub-arrays are lopsided so this case is defined by worst case [8] . We found the recursion depth is n − 1 levels and the complexity of Quicksort is. The best case occurs when the pivot is in the median at each partition step, i.e. after each partitioning, on array of size n, yielding two sub-arrays of approximately equal size and, the pivot element in the middle position takes n data comparisons [9] . There are various methods to choose a good pivot, like choosing the First element, Last element, and Median-of-three elements (selection three elements, and find the median of these elements), and so on. In this case the Quicksort algorithm selects a pivot by random selection each time. This choice reduces probability that the worst-case ever occurs. The other method, which essential prevents the worst case from ever occurring, picks a pivot as the median of the array each time. When we chose the pivot, we compare all other elements to it and we have n − 1 comparisons to divided the array. The choosing of the pivot divided the array into one sub-array of size 0 and one sub-array of size n − 1, or into a sub-array of size 1 and other one of size n − 2, and so on up to a sub-array of size n − 1 and one of size 0. We have n possible positions and each one is equality in probability 1/n. Hennequin studied comparisons for array by using Quicksort with r pivots when r = 2, same comparisons as classic Quicksort in one partitioning. When r > 2, he found the problem is complied. Yaroslavskiy [10] introduced a new implementation of Dual-pivot Quicksort in Java 7’s runtime library. In 2012, Wild and Nabel denoted exact numbers of swaps and comparisons for Yaroslavskiy’s algorithm [10] . In this paper, our aim is to analyze the running time performance of Dual-pivot Quicksort. The limiting distribution of the normalized number of comparisons required by the Dual-pivot Quicksort algorithm is studied. It is known to be the unique fixed point of a certain distributional transformation T with zero mean and finite variance.

We show that using two pivot elements (or partitioning to three subarrays) is very efficient, particularly on large arrays. We propose the new Dual-pivot Quicksort scheme, faster than the known implementations, which improves this situation (see in [11] and [12] ). The implementation of the Dual-pivot Quicksort algorithm has been inspected on different inputs and primitive data types.

The new Quicksort algorithm uses partitioning a source array, where g is primitive array which we need to sort it. Such as int, float, byte, char, double, long and short, to three parts defined by two pivot elements p and q (and therefore, there are pointers A, B, C and left and right indices of the first and last elements respectively). The aim of this paper is to present such a version arising from an algorithm depending on the work in [13] and [14] . The Dual-pivot Quicksort is explained clearly in [15] and it works as follow:

1) For small arrays (length < 17), use the Insertion sort algorithm [10] .

2) Choose two pivot elements p and q. We can get, for example, the first element as p and the last element as q.

3) p must be less than q, otherwise they are swapped. So, we have the following parts.

・ Part I with indices from left + 1 to A − 1 with elements, which are less than p.

・ Part II with indices from A to B − 1 with elements, which are greater or equal to p and less or equal to q.

・ Part III with indices from C + 1 to right − 1 with elements greater than q.

・ Part IV contains the rest of the elements to be examined with indices from B to C.

4) The next element from the part IV is compared with two pivots p and q, and placed to the corresponding part I, II, or III.

5) The pointers A, B, and C are changed in the corresponding directions.

6) The steps 4 - 5 are repeated while.

7) The pivot element p is swapped with the last element from part I, the pivot element q is swapped with the first element from part III.

8) The steps 1 - 7 are repeated recursively for every part I, part II, and part III as in Figure 1.

In this section, we introduce some running time of the Dual-pivot Quicksort. An efficient procedure is described by Vasileios Iliopoulos and David B. Penman [13] , where they analyze the Dual pivot Quicksort algorithm. Their approach can be here provided and for more details we refer to [13] and [14] . First we introduce the algorithm of it and we compare between it and the classical Quicksort as follows [16] .

The following graphs show the relation between the size of array which need to sort and the time of complexity which represent by the number of comparisons and swaps as in Figure 2. We found the Dual-pivot Quicksort is faster than classical Quicksort.

To find the distributional equation, we note the following: for the underlying process, there are two parts. The first part is partitioning and the second is the total number of comparisons to sort an array of keys, when the pivot is a uniform random variable is equal to the number of comparisons to sort the sub- array of on keys below the first pivot [17] .

In addition, we need to compute the number of comparisons to sort the sub-array of elements above the second pivot plus the number of comparisons to sort the sub-array of elements between the first and the second pivot.

Plus comparisons done to partition the array which come from when the all elements compare one time with the first pivot and the remain elements compare two times with the second and the first pivot. Therefore,

where the random variables, and are identically distributed and independent of and. Here refers to the equality in distribution.

The array is partitioned into three subarrays one with keys smaller than the first pivot, a subarray of keys between two pivots and the part of elements greater than the second pivot. The algorithm is then recursively applied to each of these subarrays. The number of comparisons during the first stage is

where and. Using [11] , the average value of can be calculated as follow:

Here by Equation (1) and using [13] , it is easy to determine the recurrence for the expected number of comparisons due to the duality as follow:

Since the three double sums above are equal, then the recurrence becomes

setting,

By initial conditions we have. Multiplying both sides by, we obtain

We introduce a difference operator for the solution of this recurrence. The operator is defined by

And for higher orders

Thus, we have

By definition (2),

then

Dividing by, we obtain the telescoping recurrence

which yields

Multiplying by, this recurrence is transformed to a telescoping one

By using maple V. Iliopoulos and D. B. Penman [13] get

And for the other sums in Equation (3):

Therefore,

Now the equation becomes

Finally, the expected number of comparisons, when two pivots are chosen is

where is the harmonic number defined by (see [18] and [19] ).

This is the same value of the expected number of comparisons, when one pivot chosen in the classical Quicksort [20] . Note that this result for the dual Quicksort is identical with the expected number of comparisons in [13] .

The main result of this section was obtained by [13] (see following results for explanation and notation). Now we compute the variance of the number of comparisons by Dual-pivot Quicksort. Recall that

From Equation (1), we have

noting that the resulting subarrays are independently sorted, then we get

Letting

be the ordinary probability generating function for the number of comparisons needed to sort n keys, we obtain

It holds that and. Moreover, the second order derivative of Equation (6) evaluated at is recursively given by

By simple manipulation of indices, the sums of the products of expected values are equal. The double sum of the product of the mean number of comparisons can be simplified as follows:

We find

The recurrence becomes

where is the second order harmonic number defined by (see [17] and [18] ). Letting and subtracting from, we get

By using the identity [4]

It holds that

The previous equation is the same as

And our recurrence becomes

Dividing by, we obtain the telescoping recurrence

which is equivalent to

Again as before, multiplying both sides by, the recurrence telescopes with solution

Using the well known fact that

the variance of the number of key comparisons of the Dual-pivot Quicksort is (see [17] [19] and [20] )

where is the second order harmonic number defined by (see [18] and [19] )

In this section, we show the convergence results which are essential for the main purpose.

Defining a random variables

Equation (8) can be rewritten in the following form

and so,

By a simple manipulation, one gets

where the cost function is given as and it seems to be like in [6] and [7] , and given by

Now, we show the random vector converges to a uniformly distributed random vector on. So,

Here is uniformly distributed random vector on. The moment generating function of

is given by

For the random vector,

Now, the random vector has the following moment generating function

By the above Equation (12) the moment generating function of is an approximation to the average value of over the interval. The moment generating function of is an approximation to the average value of over the interval (see [8] and [9] ).

For the cost function

By using asymptotically, the expected complexity of Dual-pivot Quicksort is given in Equation (4), it follows that

Thus converges to some, defined as

where U₁ and U₂ are uniformly distributed random variables on. Therefore, if we assume for moment that Y_n converges in distribution to some Y, we obtain

Here and are independent. and have the same distribution as Y. Finally we show that converges in fact to the fixed point Y.

Let D be the space of distribution functions F with finite second moments and the first moment. We use the Wasserstein metric [4] on D.

where denotes the norm. Defining a map by

where and are independent .

Here τ₁ and τ₂ are uniformly distributed random variables on and C is a map defined as. We have to refer to Roesler (see in [4] [21] and [22] ) for the main idea for the next lemma.

Lemma 1

The map is a contraction on and has a unique fixed point. Moreover, every sequence converges in the d-metric to fixed point of T.

Proof

Let F and G are in D

The random variables and are independent. Also and are independent. Here and are uniformly distributed on. Then

where

Taking the infimum over all possible we obtain

using Banach fixed point theorem completes the proof (also see [13] ).

We thank the editor and the referee for their comments.

Mahmoud Ragab,Beih El-Sayed El-Desouky,Nora Nader, (2016) On the Convergence of the Dual-Pivot Quicksort Process. Open Journal of Modelling and Simulation,04,1-15. doi: 10.4236/ojmsi.2016.41001

DUALITY -PIVOT QUICKSORT (G, left, right)

// Sort (including end points).

1) If right ? left < M // i.e. the sub-array has n ≤ M elements

2) INSERTIONSORT (G, left, right)

3) Else

4) If

5);

6) Else

7);

8) End If

9);;

10) While

11) If

12) Swap and

13)

14) Else

15) If

16) While and do End While

17) If

18) Swap and

19) Else

20) Swap and; Swap and

21)

22) End if

23)

24) End if

25) End if

26)

27) End While

28);

29); // Swap pivots to final position

30);

31) DUALITY-PIVOT QUICKSORT

32) DUALITY-PIVOT QUICKSORT

33) DUALIY-PIVOT QUICKSORT

34) End if

Here’s the implementation of the new Dual-Pivot (Yaroslavskiy) in java:

public main void sort(double[] g) {

sort(g, 0, g.length);

}

public main void sort(double[] g, double fromIndex, double toIndex) {

rangeCheck(g.length, fromIndex, toIndex);

Yaroslavskiy(g, fromIndex, toIndex - 1, 3);

}

private main void rangeCheck(double length, double fromIndex, double toIndex) {

if (fromIndex > toIndex) {

throw new IllegalArgumentException("fromIndex > toIndex");

}

if (fromIndex < 0) {

throw new ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException(fromIndex);

}

if (toIndex > length) {

throw new ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException(toIndex);

}

}

private main void swap(double[] g, double i, double j) {

int tem = g[i];

g[i] = g[j];

g[j] = tem;

}

private static void dualPivotQuicksort(double [] g, double left, double right, double div) {

double lenth = right - left;

if (lenth < 27) { // insertion sort for tiny array

for (double i = left + 1; i <= right; i++) {

for (int j = i; j > left &&g[j] < g[j - 1]; j--) {

swap(g, j, j - 1);

}

}

return;

}

int third = len / div;

// "medians"

int s1 = left + third;

int s2 = right - third;

if (s1 <= left) {

s1 = left + 1;

}

if (s2 >= right) {

s2 = right - 1;

}

if (g[s1] < g[s2]) {

swap(g, s1, left);

swap(g, s2, right);

}

else {

swap(g, s1, right);

swap(g, s2, left);

}

// chosse the pivots

double first pivot =g[left];

double second pivot = g[right];

// pointers

double less = left + 1;

double great = right - 1;

// sorting the array by the Dual pivot Quicksort

for (int k = less; k <= great; k++) {

if (g[k] < first pivot) {

swap(g, k, less++);

}

else if (g[k] > second pivot) {

until (k > great && g[great] < second pivot) {

great--;

}

swap(g, k, great--);

if (g[k] < first pivot) {

swap(g, k, less++);

}

}

}

// swaps

double Dis = great - less;

if (Dis < 13) {

div++;

}

swap(g, less - 1, left);

swap(g, great + 1, right);

// recursive the algorithm for the arrays

Yaroslavskiy(g, left, less - 2, div);

Yaroslavskiy(g, great + 2, right, div);

// subarray

if ( first pivot < second pivot) {

Yaroslavskiy(g, less, great, div);

}

}