A -set is a set with exactly elements. For a 6-set and any collection of 4-sets, we say that is -good if there are exactly three elements in that are subsets of , and they furthermore satisfy
Find all so that there exists a collection of 4-subsets of such that every 6-set is -good.
Solution
**The answer is .** Note that for , if we can construct an satisfying the problem's conditions for , then we can necessarily construct an satisfying the problem's conditions for . Therefore, we only need to prove two points:
1. When , there is no satisfying the problem's conditions.
Proof: By contradiction, suppose such an exists. Then for any , there exist three satisfying the condition, so the total number of combinations is . On the other hand, since each lies in different 's, the total number of combinations is also .
This means
hence is not an integer, a contradiction.
2. When , there exists an satisfying the problem's conditions.
Let , and for any set , let .
Consider the set
Now note that if and , then .
- : Without loss of generality, let . In this case, the elements of that are subsets of are exactly , , and , and it is easy to check that this satisfies the problem's conditions.
- : Without loss of generality, let . In this case, the elements of that are subsets of are exactly , , and , and it is easy to check that this satisfies the problem's conditions.
- : In this case . Consider two cases:
* : Without loss of generality, let . In this case, the elements of that are subsets of are exactly , , and , and it is easy to check that this satisfies the problem's conditions.
* : Without loss of generality, assume and ,
so . In this case, the elements of that are subsets of are exactly ,
, and , and it is easy to check that this satisfies the problem's conditions.