Right Side View of Binary Tree in DSA C# - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What does the "Right Side View" of a binary tree represent?

It represents the set of nodes visible when the tree is viewed from the right side, showing the rightmost node at each level.

beginner

Which traversal method is commonly used to get the right side view of a binary tree?

Level order traversal (Breadth-First Search) is commonly used, visiting nodes level by level and recording the last node at each level.

intermediate

In the context of right side view, why do we record the last node at each level during BFS?

Because the last node visited at each level is the rightmost node visible from the right side.

intermediate

What is the time complexity of finding the right side view of a binary tree using BFS?

The time complexity is O(n), where n is the number of nodes, since each node is visited once.

advanced

How can recursion be used to find the right side view of a binary tree?

By performing a depth-first search prioritizing the right child first, and recording the first node visited at each depth level.

What node is included in the right side view at each level?

A The rightmost node at that level

B All nodes at that level

C The root node only

D The leftmost node at that level

The right side view includes the rightmost node visible at each level.

Which traversal order is best suited for iterative right side view extraction?

A Level order BFS

B Inorder DFS

C Preorder DFS

D Postorder DFS

Level order BFS visits nodes level by level, making it easy to pick the rightmost node at each level.

In a recursive DFS approach for right side view, which child is visited first?

A Left child

B Right child

C Both children simultaneously

D No children

Visiting the right child first ensures the rightmost nodes are recorded first at each depth.

What data structure is commonly used to implement BFS for right side view?

A Stack

B Map

C Set

D Queue

A queue is used in BFS to process nodes level by level.

What is the space complexity of the BFS approach for right side view in the worst case?

A O(1)

B O(log n)

C O(n)

D O(n^2)

In the worst case, the queue can hold all nodes at the largest level, which can be O(n).

Explain how to find the right side view of a binary tree using level order traversal.

Think about visiting nodes level-wise and picking the rightmost node.

Describe a recursive method to get the right side view of a binary tree.

Prioritize right child and use depth to decide when to record nodes.

Practice

1. What does the "Right Side View of Binary Tree" represent?
RightSideView(root) returns which nodes?

easy

A. All nodes at the deepest level of the tree

B. Nodes visible when the tree is viewed from the left side

C. All leaf nodes of the binary tree

D. Nodes visible when the tree is viewed from the right side

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the problem context

   The right side view means seeing the tree from the right side, so only nodes visible from that angle are included.

2. Step 2: Identify what nodes are visible

   These are the rightmost nodes at each level of the tree, as nodes behind them are hidden.

3. Final Answer:

   Nodes visible when the tree is viewed from the right side -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Right side view = rightmost nodes [OK]

Hint: Right side view shows rightmost nodes at each level [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing right side view with left side view
• Including all leaf nodes instead of rightmost nodes
• Thinking it returns all nodes at the deepest level

2. Which of the following C# method signatures correctly represents a function to get the right side view of a binary tree?
class Solution { public IList<int> RightSideView(TreeNode root) { ... } }

easy

A. public List<TreeNode> RightSideView(int root)

B. public IList<int> RightSideView(TreeNode root)

C. public int RightSideView(TreeNode root)

D. public void RightSideView(TreeNode root)

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the return type

   The method should return a list of integers representing node values visible from the right side, so IList<int> is appropriate.

2. Step 2: Check parameter and method signature

   The parameter should be the root node of type TreeNode, and the method should return the list, not void or a single int.

3. Final Answer:

   public IList<int> RightSideView(TreeNode root) -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Return list of int values from TreeNode root [OK]

Hint: Return list of int, input is TreeNode root [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Returning void instead of a list
• Returning a single int instead of a list
• Wrong parameter type like int instead of TreeNode

3. What is the output of the following code?

class TreeNode {
  public int val;
  public TreeNode left, right;
  public TreeNode(int v) { val = v; }
}

var root = new TreeNode(1);
root.left = new TreeNode(2);
root.right = new TreeNode(3);
root.left.right = new TreeNode(5);
root.right.right = new TreeNode(4);

var result = RightSideView(root);
Console.WriteLine(string.Join(", ", result));

IList<int> RightSideView(TreeNode root) {
  var view = new List<int>();
  var queue = new Queue<TreeNode>();
  if (root != null) queue.Enqueue(root);
  while (queue.Count > 0) {
    int size = queue.Count;
    for (int i = 0; i < size; i++) {
      var node = queue.Dequeue();
      if (node.left != null) queue.Enqueue(node.left);
      if (node.right != null) queue.Enqueue(node.right);
      if (i == size - 1) view.Add(node.val);
    }
  }
  return view;
}

medium

A. [1, 3, 4]

B. [1, 2, 5]

C. [1, 3, 5]

D. [1, 2, 4]

Solution

1. Step 1: Trace the tree levels and nodes

   Level 1: Node 1; Level 2: Nodes 2 and 3; Level 3: Nodes 5 and 4.

2. Step 2: Identify rightmost nodes at each level

   Level 1 rightmost: 1; Level 2 rightmost: 3; Level 3 rightmost: 4.

3. Final Answer:

   [1, 3, 4] -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Rightmost nodes per level = [1, 3, 4] [OK]

Hint: Pick last node at each level in BFS order [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing leftmost nodes instead of rightmost
• Mixing node values from different levels
• Forgetting to add last node of each level

4. Find the error in this code snippet for right side view:

IList<int> RightSideView(TreeNode root) {
  var view = new List<int>();
  var queue = new Queue<TreeNode>();
  if (root != null) queue.Enqueue(root);
  while (queue.Count > 0) {
    int size = queue.Count;
    for (int i = 0; i <= size; i++) {
      var node = queue.Dequeue();
      if (node.left != null) queue.Enqueue(node.left);
      if (node.right != null) queue.Enqueue(node.right);
      if (i == size - 1) view.Add(node.val);
    }
  }
  return view;
}

medium

A. The root node should not be enqueued initially

B. The queue should be a Stack instead

C. The for loop condition should be i < size, not i <= size

D. The view list should be cleared inside the while loop

Solution

1. Step 1: Check the for loop boundary

   The for loop runs from i = 0 to i <= size, which means it runs size+1 times, causing an error when dequeueing.

2. Step 2: Correct the loop condition

   It should run exactly size times, so condition must be i < size to avoid dequeueing from empty queue.

3. Final Answer:

   The for loop condition should be i < size, not i <= size -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Loop runs size times, not size+1 [OK]

Hint: For loops over queue size use i < size, not i <= size [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using <= instead of < in loop condition
• Using stack instead of queue for BFS
• Clearing result list inside loop mistakenly

5. Given a binary tree where some nodes have only left children and others only right children, how would the right side view behave?
Example tree:

    1
   / 
  2   
   \   
    3
     \
      4

What is the right side view output?

hard

A. [1, 3, 4]

B. [4]

C. [1, 4]

D. [1, 2, 3, 4]

Solution

1. Step 1: Visualize the tree and levels

   Level 1: Node 1; Level 2: Node 2; Level 3: Node 3; Level 4: Node 4.

2. Step 2: Determine rightmost nodes at each level

   At level 2, node 2 is on the left, but node 3 is the right child of 2 and is visible from the right side. So the rightmost nodes per level are 1, 3, and 4.

3. Final Answer:

   [1, 3, 4] -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Right side view includes nodes visible from right side, skipping node 2 at level 2 [OK]

Hint: Right side view picks rightmost nodes at each level, even in skewed trees [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Skipping nodes with only left children
• Assuming only right children appear in right side view
• Returning all nodes instead of rightmost nodes