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2–3 tree
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<p>In <a href="/facts/Computer_science/lN3pEyPz">computer science</a>, a 2–3 tree is a <a href="/facts/Tree_data_structure/RcXz9noF">tree data structure</a>, where every <a href="/facts/Node_(computer_science)/eYlvVE0z">node</a> with children (<a href="/facts/Tree_(data_structure)/RcXz9noF">internal node</a>) has either two children (2-node) and one <a href="/facts/Data_element/jtyoAIAd">data element</a> or three children (3-node) and two data elements. A 2–3 tree is a <a href="/facts/B-tree/IHE2l8GR">B-tree</a> of order 3. Nodes on the outside of the tree (<a href="/facts/Leaf_node/RcXz9noF">leaf nodes</a>) have no children and one or two data elements. 2–3 trees were invented by <a href="/facts/John_Hopcroft/j42ejf1m">John Hopcroft</a> in 1970. </p><p>2–3 trees are required to be balanced, meaning that each leaf is at the same level. It follows that each right, center, and left subtree of a node contains the same or close to the same amount of data. </p>