Let the angles of a triangle be α, β, and γ, the perimeter 2p and the radius of the circumcircle R. Prove the inequality cot2α+cot2β+cot2γ≥3(p29R2−1). When is the equality achieved?
Solution
Let the opposite sides of the angles α, β, and γ be correspondingly a, b, and c. Since cot2α=1/sin2α−1 and from the law of sines 1/sinα=2R/a, we have cot2α=4R2/a2−1; similarly cot2β=4R2/b2−1 and cot2γ=4R2/c2−1. The inequality can therefore be written as 4R2⋅(a21+b21+c21)−3≥3⋅((a+b+c)24⋅9R2−1), or a21+b21+c21≥(a+b+c)227. Dividing both sides by 3 and taking the square root gives 31⋅(a21+b21+c21)≥a+b+c3. The left side is the quadratic mean of a1, b1, c1 and the right side is the harmonic mean of the same numbers, hence the inequality holds. The equality holds iff a=b=c.
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