Problem Description
Given two integer arrays nums1 and nums2, sorted in non-decreasing order, return the minimum integer common to both arrays. If there is no common integer amongst nums1 and nums2, return -1. An integer is said to be common to nums1 and nums2 if both arrays have at least one occurrence of that integer.
Key Insights
- Both arrays are sorted in non-decreasing order, which allows for efficient searching techniques.
- The goal is to find the smallest common integer, suggesting a need for a method that efficiently compares elements of both arrays.
- Possible approaches include the Two Pointers technique or using a Hash Set to track elements.
Space and Time Complexity
Time Complexity: O(n + m), where n is the length of nums1 and m is the length of nums2 (for Two Pointers approach).
Space Complexity: O(1) for the Two Pointers approach, O(n) for the Hash Set approach.
Solution
To solve the problem, we can utilize the Two Pointers technique due to the sorted nature of the arrays. We initialize two pointers, one for each array, and iterate through both arrays to find the minimum common value. If the values pointed to by both pointers are equal, we return that value as it is the minimum common value. If the value in nums1 is less than that in nums2, we move the pointer in nums1 forward to find a potential match. Conversely, if the value in nums2 is less, we advance the pointer in nums2. This continues until we either find a common value or exhaust one of the arrays.