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Geometry Difficulty 8.5 Shortlist Prove it IMO

Let ABCDABCD be a convex quadrilateral and let PP and QQ be points in ABCDABCD such that PQDAPQDA and QPBCQPBC are cyclic quadrilaterals. Suppose that there exists a point EE on the line segment PQPQ such that PAE=QDE\angle PAE = \angle QDE and PBE=QCE\angle PBE = \angle QCE. Show that the quadrilateral ABCDABCD is cyclic.

Solutions — 2

Solution 1

Let FF be the point on the line ADAD such that EFPAEF \parallel PA. By hypothesis, the quadrilateral PQDAPQDA is cyclic. So if FF lies between AA and DD then EFD=PAD=180EQD\angle EFD = \angle PAD = 180^{\circ} - \angle EQD; the points FF and QQ are on distinct sides of the line DEDE and we infer that EFDQEFDQ is a cyclic quadrilateral. And if DD lies between AA and FF then a similar argument shows that EFD=EQD\angle EFD = \angle EQD; but now the points FF and QQ lie on the same side of DEDE, so that EDFQEDFQ is a cyclic quadrilateral.

In either case we obtain the equality EFQ=EDQ=PAE\angle EFQ = \angle EDQ = \angle PAE which implies that FQAEFQ \parallel AE. So the triangles EFQEFQ and PAEPAE are either homothetic or parallel-congruent. More specifically, triangle EFQEFQ is the image of PAEPAE under the mapping ff which carries the points P,EP, E respectively to E,QE, Q and is either a homothety or translation by a vector. Note that ff is uniquely determined by these conditions and the position of the points P,E,QP, E, Q alone.

Let now GG be the point on the line BCBC such that EGPBEG \parallel PB. The same reasoning as above applies to points B,CB, C in place of A,DA, D, implying that the triangle EGQEGQ is the image of PBEPBE under the same mapping ff. So ff sends the four points A,P,B,EA, P, B, E respectively to F,E,G,QF, E, G, Q.

If PEQEPE \neq QE, so that ff is a homothety with a centre XX, then the lines AF,PE,BGAF, PE, BG—i.e. the lines AD,PQ,BCAD, PQ, BC—are concurrent at XX. And since PQDAPQDA and QPBCQPBC are cyclic quadrilaterals, the equalities XAXD=XPXQ=XBXCXA \cdot XD = XP \cdot XQ = XB \cdot XC hold, showing that the quadrilateral ABCDABCD is cyclic.

Finally, if PE=QEPE = QE, so that ff is a translation, then ADPQBCAD \parallel PQ \parallel BC. Thus PQDAPQDA and QPBCQPBC are isosceles trapezoids. Then also ABCDABCD is an isosceles trapezoid, hence a cyclic quadrilateral.

Solution 2

Here is another way to reach the conclusion that the lines ADAD, BCBC and PQPQ are either concurrent or parallel. From the cyclic quadrilateral PQDAPQDA we get
PAD=180PQD=QDE+QED=PAE+QED. \angle PAD = 180^{\circ} - \angle PQD = \angle QDE + \angle QED = \angle PAE + \angle QED.
Hence QED=PADPAE=EAD\angle QED = \angle PAD - \angle PAE = \angle EAD. This in view of the tangent-chord theorem means that the circumcircle of triangle EADEAD is tangent to the line PQPQ at EE. Analogously, the circumcircle of triangle EBCEBC is tangent to PQPQ at EE.

Suppose that the line ADAD intersects PQPQ at XX. Since XEXE is tangent to the circle (EAD)(EAD), XE2=XAXDXE^2 = XA \cdot XD. Also, XAXD=XPXQXA \cdot XD = XP \cdot XQ because P,Q,D,AP, Q, D, A lie on a circle. Therefore XE2=XPXQXE^2 = XP \cdot XQ.

It is not hard to see that this equation determines the position of the point XX on the line PQPQ uniquely. Thus, if BCBC also cuts PQPQ, say at YY, then the analogous equation for YY yields X=YX = Y, meaning that the three lines indeed concur. In this case, as well as in the case where ADPQBCAD \parallel PQ \parallel BC, the concluding argument is the same as in the first solution.

It remains to eliminate the possibility that e.g. ADAD meets PQPQ at XX while BCPQBC \parallel PQ. Indeed, QPBCQPBC would then be an isosceles trapezoid and the angle equality PBE=QCE\angle PBE = \angle QCE would force that EE is the midpoint of PQPQ. So the length of XEXE, which is the geometric mean of the lengths of XPXP and XQXQ, should also be their arithmetic mean—impossible, as XPXQXP \neq XQ. The proof is now complete.

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