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Algebra Difficulty 7.1 National olympiad, round 2 Find the answer

The least positive angle α\alpha for which (34sin2(α))(34sin2(3α))(34sin2(32α))(34sin2(33α))=1256\left(\frac34-\sin^2(\alpha)\right)\left(\frac34-\sin^2(3\alpha)\right)\left(\frac34-\sin^2(3^2\alpha)\right)\left(\frac34-\sin^2(3^3\alpha)\right)=\frac1{256} has a degree measure of mn\tfrac{m}{n}, where mm and nn are relatively prime positive integers. Find m+nm+n.

A number or a short expression. Fractions can be typed as 3/2, and spacing doesn't matter.

Solution

1. Rewrite the given equation using trigonometric identities:

The given equation is:
(34sin2(α))(34sin2(3α))(34sin2(32α))(34sin2(33α))=1256 \left(\frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(\alpha)\right)\left(\frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(3\alpha)\right)\left(\frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(3^2\alpha)\right)\left(\frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(3^3\alpha)\right) = \frac{1}{256}

2. **Use the identity for sin2(x)\sin^2(x):**

Recall that sin2(x)=1cos(2x)2\sin^2(x) = \frac{1 - \cos(2x)}{2}. Therefore:
34sin2(x)=341cos(2x)2=3412+cos(2x)2=14+cos(2x)2 \frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(x) = \frac{3}{4} - \frac{1 - \cos(2x)}{2} = \frac{3}{4} - \frac{1}{2} + \frac{\cos(2x)}{2} = \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(2x)}{2}

3. Simplify each term:

Applying the above identity to each term:
34sin2(α)=14+cos(2α)2 \frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(\alpha) = \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(2\alpha)}{2}
34sin2(3α)=14+cos(6α)2 \frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(3\alpha) = \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(6\alpha)}{2}
34sin2(9α)=14+cos(18α)2 \frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(9\alpha) = \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(18\alpha)}{2}
34sin2(27α)=14+cos(54α)2 \frac{3}{4} - \sin^2(27\alpha) = \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(54\alpha)}{2}

4. Combine the terms:

The product of these terms is:
(14+cos(2α)2)(14+cos(6α)2)(14+cos(18α)2)(14+cos(54α)2)=1256 \left(\frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(2\alpha)}{2}\right)\left(\frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(6\alpha)}{2}\right)\left(\frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(18\alpha)}{2}\right)\left(\frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(54\alpha)}{2}\right) = \frac{1}{256}

5. Simplify the equation:

Notice that 1256=(14)4\frac{1}{256} = \left(\frac{1}{4}\right)^4. Therefore, each term must be equal to 14\frac{1}{4}:
14+cos(2α)2=14 \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(2\alpha)}{2} = \frac{1}{4}
14+cos(6α)2=14 \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(6\alpha)}{2} = \frac{1}{4}
14+cos(18α)2=14 \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(18\alpha)}{2} = \frac{1}{4}
14+cos(54α)2=14 \frac{1}{4} + \frac{\cos(54\alpha)}{2} = \frac{1}{4}

6. **Solve for α\alpha:**

Each equation simplifies to:
cos(2α)2=0    cos(2α)=0    2α=90    α=45 \frac{\cos(2\alpha)}{2} = 0 \implies \cos(2\alpha) = 0 \implies 2\alpha = 90^\circ \implies \alpha = 45^\circ

However, we need to find the least positive angle α\alpha such that:
sin(81α)=sin(α) \sin(81\alpha) = \sin(\alpha)

This implies:
81α=180k+αor81α=180kα 81\alpha = 180^\circ k + \alpha \quad \text{or} \quad 81\alpha = 180^\circ k - \alpha

For the smallest positive α\alpha:
81α=180+α    80α=180    α=18080=94 81\alpha = 180^\circ + \alpha \implies 80\alpha = 180^\circ \implies \alpha = \frac{180^\circ}{80} = \frac{9^\circ}{4}

7. **Express α\alpha in simplest form:**

α=94\alpha = \frac{9}{4}^\circ. In degrees, this is 94\frac{9}{4}.

8. **Find m+nm + n:**

Here, m=9m = 9 and n=4n = 4. Therefore, m+n=9+4=13m + n = 9 + 4 = 13.

The final answer is 13\boxed{13}.

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Source: NuminaMath-1.5, licensed Apache-2.0. Statement and solution reproduced as published; topic and difficulty added by this site.