serialize-and-deserialize-binary-tree.md

<p>Serialization is the process of converting a data structure or object into a sequence of bits so that it can be stored in a file or memory buffer, or transmitted across a network connection link to be reconstructed later in the same or another computer environment.</p>

<p>Design an algorithm to serialize and deserialize a binary tree. There is no restriction on how your serialization/deserialization algorithm should work. You just need to ensure that a binary tree can be serialized to a string and this string can be deserialized to the original tree structure.</p>

<p><strong>Example:&nbsp;</strong></p>

<pre>
You may serialize the following tree:

    1
   / \
  2   3
     / \
    4   5

as <code>&quot;[1,2,3,null,null,4,5]&quot;</code>
</pre>

<p><strong>Clarification:</strong> The above format is the same as <a href="/faq/#binary-tree">how LeetCode serializes a binary tree</a>. You do not necessarily need to follow this format, so please be creative and come up with different approaches yourself.</p>

<p><strong>Note:&nbsp;</strong>Do not use class member/global/static variables to store states. Your serialize and deserialize algorithms should be stateless.</p>