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Algebra Difficulty 5.1 AIME, harder Prove it Thailand

Does there exist a function f:ZZf: \mathbb{Z} \to \mathbb{Z} such that
f(f(n)2n)=2f(n)+n f(f(n) - 2n) = 2f(n) + n
for all integers nn?

Solution

There are many functions ff that satisfy the given condition. One of them is given by the following definition:
f(n)={nif n03nif n<0 f(n) = \begin{cases} n & \text{if } n \ge 0 \\ -3n & \text{if } n < 0 \end{cases}
which can be verified in the following 3 cases.

n>0n > 0: f(f(n)2n)=f(n)=3nf(f(n) - 2n) = f(-n) = 3n and 2f(n)+n=2n+n=3n2f(n) + n = 2n + n = 3n.

n<0n < 0: f(f(n)2n)=f(5n)=5nf(f(n) - 2n) = f(-5n) = -5n and 2f(n)+n=5n2f(n) + n = -5n.

n=0n = 0: We have f(0)=0f(0) = 0 and f(f(n)2n)=2f(n)+n=0f(f(n) - 2n) = 2f(n) + n = 0.

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