Number theoryDifficulty 6.4National olympiadFind the answer
Example 6 Find all prime numbers p such that p2p−1−1 is a perfect square.
Find all prime numbers p such that p2p−1−1 is a perfect square.
A number or a short expression. Fractions can be typed as 3/2, and spacing doesn't matter.
Solution
Let p be a prime number that satisfies the condition, then obviously p is an odd prime. By Fermat's Little Theorem, we have
Thus, p∣2p−1−12p−1−1=(22p−1−1)(22p−1+1)p22p−1−1 or p22p−1+1
Since (22p−1−1,22p−1+1)=(22p−1−1,2)=1, one of p22p−1−1 and p22p−1+1 must hold.
If p22p−1−1, then by the condition and (22p−1−1,22p−1+1)=1, there exists a positive integer x such that
At this point, 22p−1+1=x2(x−1)(x+1)=22p−1
This indicates that x−1 and x+1 are both powers of 2, and x is odd, so x−1 and x+1 are two consecutive even numbers. Therefore, it can only be x−1=2,x+1=4
Thus, x=3p=7
If p22p−1+1, then similarly, there exists a positive integer x such that 22p−1−1=x2,
When p>3, this leads to x2=22p−1−1≡−1(mod4)
which is a contradiction, so p=3. On the other hand, when p=3 and 7, p2p−1−1 are 1 and 9, respectively, both of which are perfect squares. In summary, p=3 or 7.
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