Number theoryDifficulty 4.0AMC 10/12Find the answerItaly
x and y are two positive integers such that x2−y2 is positive, a multiple of 2011 and has exactly 2011 positive divisors. How many ordered pairs (x,y) satisfy these conditions? Note: 2011 is a prime number
Pick one
Solution
The answer is (C). First of all, note that a number has exactly 2011 positive divisors if and only if it is of the form p2010 with p prime. We therefore need to solve x2−y2=20112010.
By imposing that x+y=pα and that x−y=pβ, with α+β=2010, we obtain that x=2pα+pβ, that y=2pα−pβ and hence that α>β since y must be positive. The equation α+β=2010 with α>β has exactly 1005 solutions. Since x and y are uniquely determined by α and β, it follows that the solutions of the initial equation are also exactly 1005.
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