Maths Olympiad Prep

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Number theory Difficulty 4.7 AIME Prove it New Zealand

Problem:
For any positive integer nn let n!=1×2×3××nn! = 1 \times 2 \times 3 \times \dots \times n. Do there exist infinitely many triples (p,q,r)(p, q, r), of positive integers with p>q>r>1p > q > r > 1 such that the product
p!q!r!p! \cdot q! \cdot r!
is a perfect square?

Solutions — 3

Solution 1

Solution:
Yes. Let tt be an arbitrary positive integer and consider the following perfect square:
(t!)2=(t!)(t!1)!t!.(t!)^{2} = (t!) \cdot (t! - 1)! \cdot t!.
So if we consider (p,q,r)=(t!,t!1,t)(p,q,r) = (t!, t! - 1, t) then p!q!r!=(t!)2p!q!r! = (t!)^{2} which is a perfect square. Since the choice of tt is arbitrary, there must be infinitely many such triples.

Solution 2

Solution:
Yes. Consider the substitution (p,q,r)=(6t2,6t21,3)(p,q,r) = (6t^{2}, 6t^{2} - 1, 3)
p!q!r!=(6t2)!(6t21)!3!=((6t21)!×6t)2p! \cdot q! \cdot r! = (6t^{2})! \cdot (6t^{2} - 1)! \cdot 3! = ((6t^{2} - 1)! \times 6t)^{2}
which is a perfect square. Since the choice of tt is arbitrary, there must be infinitely many such triples.

Solution 3

Solution:
This solution shows a stronger result. For any positive integer kk, there exist infinitely many qq such that (q+1)!q!k(q + 1)! \cdot q! \cdot k is a perfect square. This can be seen by setting q+1=kx2q + 1 = kx^{2} for any xx. This of course implies the required result.

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