Problem:
Let denote the Catalan number and be an odd prime. Prove that exactly half of the numbers in the set
are divisible by .
Solutions — 3
Solution 1
Solution:
We work in .
We claim that
The solution follows from this claim, as
Since , this is equivalent to or being a non-zero quadratic residue in . But we must omit the solution of , so we get values of that work. Now we prove the claim. Observe the following facts:
- by Lucas' theorem.
- For ,
since , so .
We show that the coefficient of in the LHS is 0 for . This is obvious for and by the above facts, as the coefficient is for , for , and 0 for .
Now for , the coefficient is . Write
so the coefficient is 0 .
Solution 2
Solution:
We present an alternate proof of the key claim. Use the same starting facts as before.
Let .
Square and multiply by to get
It follows that
Evaluating the second factor at 0 gives , so it is not the zero polynomial. Thus the first factor is the zero polynomial, from which the claim follows.
Solution 3
Solution:
We prove the following generalization: Let be a power of . Then the polynomial has roots in and roots in . It once again suffices to prove the key claim, just with replaced by .
Work in , the ring of formal power series over . Then
Taking both sides mod ,
Then using , we have
so
from which the claim follows.
Alternatively, one can also finish by integrating , noting that the "constant of integration" is no longer a constant but rather a polynomial of the form .