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Geometry Difficulty 7.0 National Olympiad, round 2 Prove it Ibero-American Mathematical Olympiad

Problem:

Given two points AA and BB, take CC on the perpendicular bisector of ABAB. Define the sequence C1,C2,C3,C_{1}, C_{2}, C_{3}, \ldots as follows. C1=CC_{1}=C. If CnC_{n} is not on ABAB, then Cn+1C_{n+1} is the circumcenter of the triangle ABCnABC_{n}. If CnC_{n} lies on ABAB, then Cn+1C_{n+1} is not defined and the sequence terminates. Find all points CC such that the sequence is periodic from some point on.

Solution

Solution:

Answer: any CC such that ACB=180r/s\angle ACB=180^{\circ} r / s, with rr and ss relatively prime integers and ss not a power of 22.

Let ACnB=xn\angle AC_{n}B = x_{n}, where the angle is measured clockwise, so that xnx_{n} is positive on one side of ABAB and negative on the other side. Then xnx_{n} uniquely identifies CnC_{n} on the perpendicular bisector.

We have xn+1=2xnx_{n+1} = 2 x_{n}. To make this work in all cases we have to take it mod 180180^{\circ} (so that if ACnBAC_{n}B is obtuse, then Cn+1C_{n+1} lies on the other side of ABAB). If xnx_{n} is eventually periodic then xm+1=xn+1x_{m+1} = x_{n+1}, for some n>mn > m, so (2n2m)x1=0mod180(2^{n} - 2^{m}) x_{1} = 0 \bmod 180. Hence x1=180r/sx_{1} = 180 r / s for some relatively prime integers r,sr, s. Also ss cannot be a power of 22 for then we would have xk=180rx_{k} = 180 r for some kk, in which case the sequence would terminate rather than be periodic.

Conversely, suppose x1=180r/sx_{1} = 180 r / s, with rr and ss relatively prime and ss not a power of 22. Then xn+1=1802nr/sx_{n+1} = 180 \cdot 2^{n} r / s cannot be 0mod1800 \bmod 180, so the sequence does not terminate. Put s=2bcs = 2^{b} c, with cc odd. Let d=φ(c)d = \varphi(c), where φ(m)\varphi(m) is Euler's phi function, so that 2d=1modc2^{d} = 1 \mod c. Then xb+1=180r/cmod180x_{b+1} = 180 r / c \bmod 180 and 2b+d=2bmodc2^{b+d} = 2^{b} \bmod c, so xb+d+1=180r/cmod180x_{b+d+1} = 180 r / c \mod 180. Hence the sequence is periodic.

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