Finding the Maximum Suffix with Fewer Comparisons

It is shown how to compute the lexicographically maximum suffix of a string of n≥2 characters over a totally ordered alphabet using at most (4/3)n−5/3 three-way character comparisons. The best previous bound, which has stood unchallenged for more than 25 years, is (3/2)n−O(1) comparisons. We also prove an interesting property of an algorithm for computing the maximum suffix both with respect to a total order .