For integers we define the bibinomial coefficient by
Determine all pairs of integers with such that the corresponding bibinomial coefficient is an integer.
Solution
To solve the problem of determining the pairs such that the bibinomial coefficient is an integer, let us first express the bibinomial coefficient using the given formula:
where the notation denotes the double factorial, defined as:
- if is odd,
- if is even.
Given , we need to find when this quotient is an integer. Let's analyze different scenarios:
1. **Case :**
Here, we have:
which is clearly an integer.
2. **Case :**
Similarly, we have:
which is also an integer.
3. **Case both and are even:**
Let and where and are integers. The expression becomes:
Each of these double factorials is a product of even numbers. Consequently, the quotient is an integer since every factor in the denominator can be paired with the factors in the numerator.
4. **Special case (n, k) = (2, 1):**
Here, calculate directly:
\[
\left( \binom{2}{1} \right) = \frac{2!!}{1!! \cdot 1!!} = \frac{2}{1} = 2,
\]
which is an integer.
Thus, the pairs \((n, k) for which the bibinomial coefficient is an integer are:
- Such that or ,
- Both and are even, or
- .
Therefore, the complete set of pairs is: