# superposition cycle

I am reading a bachelor thesis where one defines a superposition cycle (of a graph) is a cycle which also is a symmetric difference of two perfect matchings of that graph. I am wondering that if the symmetric difference of any two perfect matchings is always a cycle, and a superposition cycles always have even length. Someone can help me? Thanks a lot!

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First note that in the symmetric difference of two perfect matchings $M_1\bigtriangleup M_2$ no vertex can have degree greater than 2, so $\deg(v)\leq 2$ for any $v\in V(M_1\bigtriangleup M_2)$.
Now, also observe that no vertex can have degree 1 in $M_1\bigtriangleup M_2$ as $M_1$ and $M_2$ are perfect matchings. Therefore vertices of $M_1\bigtriangleup M_2$ have degree 0 or 2. From this it follows that $M_1\bigtriangleup M_2$ just consists of cycles and isolated vertices.
Now, any cycle in $M_1\bigtriangleup M_2$ must have even length, since $M_1$ and $M_2$ are matchings.
You can get instances where $M_1\bigtriangleup M_2$ contains more than one cycle of even length, for example consider the graph $K_{4,4}$ with bipartition $\{a,b,c,d\}$ and $\{w,x,y,z\}$. Take $M_1=\{aw,bx,cy,dz\}$ and $M_2=\{ax,bw,cz,dy\}$.