Maths Olympiad Prep

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Algebra Difficulty 7.4 National Olympiad, round 2 Prove it United States

Find all positive integers nn such that there are k2k \ge 2 positive rational numbers a1,a2,,aka_1, a_2, \dots, a_k satisfying a1+a2++ak=a1a2ak=na_1 + a_2 + \dots + a_k = a_1 \cdot a_2 \dots a_k = n.

Solution

The answer is n=4n = 4 or n6n \ge 6.

I. First, we prove that each n{4,6,7,8,9,}n \in \{4, 6, 7, 8, 9, \dots\} satisfies the condition.

(1). If n=2k4n = 2k \ge 4 is even, we set (a1,a2,,ak)=(k,2,1,,1)(a_1, a_2, \dots, a_k) = (k, 2, 1, \dots, 1):
a1+a2++ak=k+2+1(k2)=2k=n, a_1 + a_2 + \dots + a_k = k + 2 + 1 \cdot (k-2) = 2k = n,
and
a1a2ak=2k=n. a_1 \cdot a_2 \cdot \dots \cdot a_k = 2k = n.

(2). If n=2k+39n = 2k + 3 \ge 9 is odd, we set (a1,a2,,ak)=(k+32,12,4,1,,1)(a_1, a_2, \dots, a_k) = (k + \frac{3}{2}, \frac{1}{2}, 4, 1, \dots, 1):
a1+a2++ak=k+32+12+4+(k3)=2k+3=n, a_1 + a_2 + \dots + a_k = k + \frac{3}{2} + \frac{1}{2} + 4 + (k-3) = 2k + 3 = n,
and
a1a2ak=(k+32)124=2k+3=n. a_1 \cdot a_2 \cdot \dots \cdot a_k = \left(k + \frac{3}{2}\right) \cdot \frac{1}{2} \cdot 4 = 2k + 3 = n.

(3). A very special case is n=7n = 7, in which we set (a1,a2,a3)=(43,76,92)(a_1, a_2, a_3) = (\frac{4}{3}, \frac{7}{6}, \frac{9}{2}). It is also easy to check that
a1+a2+a3=a1a2a3=7=n.a_1 + a_2 + a_3 = a_1 \cdot a_2 \cdot a_3 = 7 = n.

II. Second, we prove by contradiction that each n{1,2,3,5}n \in \{1, 2, 3, 5\} fails to satisfy the condition.
Suppose, on the contrary, that there is a set of k2k \ge 2 positive rational numbers whose sum and product are both n{1,2,3,5}n \in \{1, 2, 3, 5\}. By the Arithmetic-Geometric Mean inequality, we have
n1/k=a1a2akka1+a2++akk=nk, n^{1/k} = \sqrt[k]{a_1 \cdot a_2 \cdot \dots \cdot a_k} \le \frac{a_1 + a_2 + \dots + a_k}{k} = \frac{n}{k},
which gives
nkkk1=k1+1k1. n \ge k^{\frac{k}{k-1}} = k^{1+\frac{1}{k-1}}.
Note that n>5n > 5 whenever k=3,4k = 3, 4, or k5k \ge 5:
k=3n33=5.196>5; k = 3 \Rightarrow n \ge 3\sqrt{3} = 5.196\dots > 5;
k=4n443=6.349>5; k = 4 \Rightarrow n \ge 4\sqrt[3]{4} = 6.349\dots > 5;
k5n51+1k1>5. k \ge 5 \Rightarrow n \ge 5^{1+\frac{1}{k-1}} > 5.
This proves that none of the integers 1, 2, 3, or 5 can be represented as the sum and, at the same time, as the product of three or more positive numbers a1,a2,,aka_1, a_2, \dots, a_k, rational or irrational.
The remaining case k=2k = 2 also goes to a contradiction. Indeed, a1+a2=a1a2=na_1 + a_2 = a_1a_2 = n implies that n=a12/(a11)n = a_1^2/(a_1 - 1) and thus a1a_1 satisfies the quadratic
a12na1+n=0. a_1^2 - n a_1 + n = 0.
Since a1a_1 is supposed to be rational, the discriminant n24nn^2 - 4n must be a perfect square. However, it can be easily checked that this is not the case for any n{1,2,3,5}n \in \{1, 2, 3, 5\}. This completes the proof.

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