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Algebra Difficulty 7.9 National olympiad, round 2 Find the answer

Let R\mathbb R be the set of real numbers. We denote by F\mathcal F the set of all functions f ⁣:RRf\colon\mathbb R\to\mathbb R such that
f(x+f(y))=f(x)+f(y)f(x + f(y)) = f(x) + f(y)
for every x,yRx,y\in\mathbb R Find all rational numbers qq such that for every function fFf\in\mathcal F, there exists some zRz\in\mathbb R satisfying f(z)=qzf(z)=qz.

A number or a short expression. Spacing and $ signs are ignored.

Solution

Let F \mathcal{F} be the set of all functions f:RR f: \mathbb{R} \to \mathbb{R} satisfying the functional equation:

f(x+f(y))=f(x)+f(y) f(x + f(y)) = f(x) + f(y)

for every x,yR x, y \in \mathbb{R} . We are tasked with finding all rational numbers q q such that for every function fF f \in \mathcal{F} , there exists some zR z \in \mathbb{R} satisfying f(z)=qz f(z) = qz .

### Step-by-step Solution

1. Initial Observations:
- Substitute x=0 x = 0 in the functional equation:
f(f(y))=f(0)+f(y) f(f(y)) = f(0) + f(y)
- Let f(0)=c f(0) = c , then we have:
f(f(y))=c+f(y) f(f(y)) = c + f(y)

2. Simplifying the Condition:
- Substitute y=0 y = 0 in the original equation:
f(x+c)=f(x)+c f(x + c) = f(x) + c

3. Investigate Linearity:
- Assume a special case where f f is linear, i.e., f(x)=mx f(x) = mx for some constant m m .
- Then, substituting in the original equation:
f(x+f(y))=m(x+my)=mx+m2y f(x + f(y)) = m(x + my) = mx + m^2y
and
f(x)+f(y)=mx+my f(x) + f(y) = mx + my
- For the original functional equation to hold, m2=m m^2 = m , giving us m=0 m = 0 or m=1 m = 1 .

4. General Solution and Rational Constraints:
- Consider f(x)=n+1nx f(x) = \frac{n+1}{n}x for any nonzero integer n n .
- Verify f(x+f(y))=f(x)+f(y) f(x + f(y)) = f(x) + f(y) :
f(x+f(y))=f(x+n+1ny)=n+1n(x+n+1ny)=n+1nx+(n+1)2n2y f(x + f(y)) = f\left(x + \frac{n+1}{n}y\right) = \frac{n+1}{n}\left(x + \frac{n+1}{n}y\right) = \frac{n+1}{n}x + \frac{(n+1)^2}{n^2}y
and
f(x)+f(y)=n+1nx+n+1ny f(x) + f(y) = \frac{n+1}{n}x + \frac{n+1}{n}y
- These functions satisfy the condition and demonstrate that the rational numbers satisfying the property are:
n+1n, for any nonzero integer n \boxed{\frac{n+1}{n} \text{, for any nonzero integer } n}

The values of q q that satisfy the condition for every fF f \in \mathcal{F} are indeed n+1n \frac{n+1}{n} where n n is any nonzero integer.

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