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Algebra Difficulty 8.6 Shortlist Prove it Saudi Arabia

Find all functions f:RRf : \mathbb{R} \to \mathbb{R} such that
2f(x)f(x+y)f(x2)=x2(f(2x)+4f(f(y))) 2f(x)f(x + y) - f(x^2) = \frac{x}{2}(f(2x) + 4f(f(y)))
for all x,yRx, y \in \mathbb{R}.

Solution

Put x=0x = 0, we get 2f(0)f(y)f(0)=02f(0)f(y) - f(0) = 0, if f(0)0f(0) \neq 0 then f(y)=1/2f(y) = 1/2 for all yy, which does not satisfy. Thus f(0)=0f(0) = 0.

Put y=0y = 0, we get 2f(x)2f(x2)=x/2f(2x)2f(x)^2 - f(x^2) = x/2 \cdot f(2x) then plugging back 2f(x)f(x+y)=2f(x)2+2xf(f(y))2f(x) \cdot f(x+y) = 2f(x)^2 + 2x \cdot f(f(y)) so
f(x)f(x+y)=f(x)2+xf(f(y)).() f(x) \cdot f(x+y) = f(x)^2 + x \cdot f(f(y)). \qquad (\diamond)
Note that f(x)2=xf(f(x))f(-x)^2 = x \cdot f(f(x)). In ()(\diamond), take y=2xy = -2x then
f(x)f(x)=f(x)2+xf(f(2x)). f(x) \cdot f(-x) = f(x)^2 + x \cdot f(f(-2x)).
Note that 2xf(f(2x))=f(2x)2-2x \cdot f(f(-2x)) = f(2x)^2, so xf(f(2x))=f(2x)2/2x \cdot f(f(-2x)) = -f(2x)^2/2. Thus
f(x)f(x)=f(x)2f(2x)2/2 f(x) \cdot f(-x) = f(x)^2 - f(2x)^2/2
or
2f(x)f(x)+2f(x)2=f(2x)2. -2f(x)f(-x) + 2f(x)^2 = f(2x)^2.
In ()(\diamond), take x=y0x = y \neq 0 then
f(x)f(2x)=f(x)2+xf(f(x)) f(x) \cdot f(2x) = f(x)^2 + x \cdot f(f(x))
or
f(2x)=f(x)+xf(f(x))/f(x)=f(x)+f(x)2/f(x). f(2x) = f(x) + x \cdot f(f(x))/f(x) = f(x) + f(-x)^2/f(x).
So (f(x)+f(x)2/f(x))2=2f(x)22f(x)f(x)(f(x) + f(-x)^2/f(x))^2 = 2f(x)^2 - 2f(x) \cdot f(-x). Dividing both sides by f(x)2f(-x)^2 and put k=f(x)/f(x)k = f(x)/f(-x) then
(k+1/k)2=2k22kk22k=2+1/k2. (k + 1/k)^2 = 2k^2 - 2k \longleftrightarrow k^2 - 2k = 2 + 1/k^2.
Changing the sign xxx \to -x then we get (k+1/k)2=2/k22/k(k + 1/k)^2 = 2/k^2 - 2/k combining with above, we get k=1k = -1. Then f(x)f(x) is odd. Now we get f(x)2=xf(f(x))f(x)^2 = x \cdot f(f(x)). Put yyy \to -y, we get
f(x)f(xy)=f(x)2+xf(f(y)), f(x) \cdot f(x - y) = f(x)^2 + x \cdot f(f(-y)),
f(x)[f(x+y)+f(xy)]=2f(x)2. f(x)[f(x + y) + f(x - y)] = 2f(x)^2.
Consider x0x \neq 0 then f(x+y)+f(xy)=2f(x)f(x + y) + f(x - y) = 2f(x) using f(0)=0f(0) = 0, this implies that f(x)f(x) is additive. Note that
2f(x)2f(x2)=x/2f(2x)=xf(x)    2f(x)2=f(x2)+xf(x). 2f(x)^2 - f(x^2) = x/2 \cdot f(2x) = x \cdot f(x) \iff 2f(x)^2 = f(x^2) + xf(x).
Plugging xx+1x \to x + 1, it is easily to get f(x)=axf(x) = ax and putting back to the original, a=1a = 1. There are two solutions: f(x)=0,f(x)=xf(x) = 0, f(x) = x. \square

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