Number theoryDifficulty 7.9National Olympiad, round 2Prove itHong Kong
Recall that n is perfect if the sum of the divisors of n is 2n. Suppose now n is an odd perfect number. Show that n has at least 3 distinct prime factors.
Solution
If n=pk for some odd prime p and positive integer k, then we have nσ(n)=pk1+p+⋯+pk=1+p1+⋯+pk1<1−p11=p−1p<2. If n=pkqℓ for some odd primes p,q and positive integers k,ℓ, then we have nσ(n)=pk1+p+⋯+pk⋅qℓ1+q+⋯+qℓ<p−1p⋅q−1q≤23⋅45<2. This shows σ(n)<2n if n has at most 2 distinct prime factors. Therefore, in order that n is a perfect number, it must have at least 3 distinct prime factors.
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