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NMO Selection Tests for the Junior Balkan Mathematical Olympiad - Fourth Selection Test

Number theory Difficulty 5.5 AIME, harder Prove it Romania

Let aa and bb be two distinct positive integers having the same parity.
Prove that a!+b!2a\frac{a!+b!}{2^a} is not an integer (note: n!=1⋅2⋅⋯⋅nn! = 1 \cdot 2 \cdot \dots \cdot n, for any positive integer nn).

Solution

First, we prove that for any positive integer nn, 2n2^n is not a divisor of n!n!.
Assume the opposite; then, in the prime factorization of n!n! there should be at least nn factors equal to 22. The exponent of 22 in n!n! is equal to ⌊n2⌋+⌊n22⌋+⋯+⌊n2k⌋\lfloor \frac{n}{2} \rfloor + \lfloor \frac{n}{2^2} \rfloor + \dots + \lfloor \frac{n}{2^k} \rfloor, where k∈N∗k \in \mathbb{N}^*, k<nk < n, ⌊n2k⌋≠0\lfloor \frac{n}{2^k} \rfloor \ne 0 and ⌊n2k+1⌋=0\lfloor \frac{n}{2^{k+1}} \rfloor = 0. It follows that n2+n22+⋯+n2k≥⌊n2⌋+⌊n22⌋+⋯+⌊n2k⌋≥n\frac{n}{2} + \frac{n}{2^2} + \dots + \frac{n}{2^k} \ge \lfloor \frac{n}{2} \rfloor + \lfloor \frac{n}{2^2} \rfloor + \dots + \lfloor \frac{n}{2^k} \rfloor \ge n.
Then n2+n22+⋯+n2k≥n\frac{n}{2} + \frac{n}{2^2} + \dots + \frac{n}{2^k} \ge n, so 1−12k≥11 - \frac{1}{2^k} \ge 1, which is false.

If a≥b+2a \ge b+2, then a!+b!=b!⋅(1+(b+1)⋅(b+2)⋅⋯⋅a)=n⋅2aa! + b! = b! \cdot (1 + (b+1) \cdot (b+2) \cdot \dots \cdot a) = n \cdot 2^a and, since 1+(b+1)⋅(b+2)⋅⋯⋅b1 + (b+1) \cdot (b+2) \cdot \dots \cdot b is odd, we get 2a∣b!2^a \mid b!. But b!∣a!b! \mid a!, so 2a∣a!2^a \mid a!, which is false.

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Source: MathNet, licensed CC-BY-4.0. Statement reproduced verbatim; metadata (topic, difficulty) added by this project.