A Relationship between the Second Largest Eigenvalue and Local Valency of an Edge-regular Graph

For a distance-regular graph with valency k, second largest eigenvalue r and diameter D, it is known that r ≥ $min\{\frac{{\lambda}+\sqrt{{\lambda}^2+4k}}{2},\;a_3\}$ if D = 3 and r ≥ $\frac{{\lambda}+\sqrt{{\lambda}^2+4k}}{2}$ if D ≥ 4, where λ = a₁. This result can be generalized to the class of edge-regular graphs. For an edge-regular graph with parameters (v, k, λ) and diameter D ≥ 4, we compare $\frac{{\lambda}+\sqrt{{\lambda}^2+4k}}{2}$ with the local valency λ to find a relationship between the second largest eigenvalue and the local valency. For an edge-regular graph with diameter 3, we look at the number $\frac{{\lambda}-\bar{\mu}+\sqrt{({\lambda}-\bar{\mu})^2+4(k-\bar{\mu})}}{2}$, where $\bar{\mu}=\frac{k(k-1-{\lambda})}{v-k-1}$, and compare this number with the local valency λ to give a relationship between the second largest eigenvalue and the local valency. Also, we apply these relationships to distance-regular graphs.