Advanced data structures in C are used for storing and manipulating complex data in an organized and efficient way. Some of the commonly used advanced data structures in C are linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, and graphs.
1. Linked lists: A linked list is a data structure that consists of a sequence of nodes, where each node contains a value and a pointer to the next node in the list. Linked lists are useful for storing data that needs to be dynamically allocated and deallocated at runtime. Linked lists can be singly linked, doubly linked, or circular.
2. Stacks: A stack is a data structure that stores a collection of elements in a last-in-first-out (LIFO) order. Stacks are useful for implementing algorithms that involve recursion, backtracking, or parsing. Stacks can be implemented using arrays or linked lists.
3. Queues: A queue is a data structure that stores a collection of elements in a first-in-first-out (FIFO) order. Queues are useful for implementing algorithms that involve scheduling, resource allocation, or event handling. Queues can be implemented using arrays or linked lists.
4. Trees: A tree is a data structure that consists of a collection of nodes, where each node has a value and zero or more child nodes. Trees are useful for modeling hierarchical relationships between data. Trees can be binary (each node has at most two child nodes) or n-ary (each node has any number of child nodes).
5. Graphs: A graph is a data structure that consists of a collection of vertices (nodes) and edges (connections between nodes). Graphs are useful for modeling complex relationships between data. Graphs can be directed (edges have a direction) or undirected (edges do not have a direction).
In C, these data structures can be implemented using structs, arrays, pointers, and dynamic memory allocation. Advanced data structures can be used to implement a wide variety of algorithms and applications, including sorting, searching, pathfinding, networking, and database management. It’s important to choose the appropriate data structure for the task at hand, and to understand the trade-offs between different data structures in terms of memory usage, time complexity, and ease of implementation.