Number theoryDifficulty 6.0AIME, harderProve itSaudi Arabia
Define sequence of positive integers (an) as a1=a and an+1=an2+1 for n≥1. Prove that there is no index n for which k=1∏n(ak2+ak+1) is a perfect square.
Solution
Denote p as a prime of a12+a1+1, note that a1 is odd (since a12+a1+1=a1(a1+1)+1 is an odd number) and p∣a1. By induction, we can show that an≡a2≡−a1(modp) for any n>1. Thus an2+an+1≡a12−a1+1≡−2a1≡0(modp) so vp(k=1∏n(ak2+ak+1))=vp(a12+a1+1). Since a12<a12+a1+1<(a1+1)2, then a12+a1+1 is not a perfect square. This implies that there exist some prime p such that vp(a12+a1+1) is odd. This finishes the proof. □
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