Maths Olympiad Prep

Track / Stage 3 / 78 of 260 #78 of 1964

Problem 78

AMC 10/12, early questions
Algebra Difficulty 3.2 Find the answer

Given the following four propositions:

p_1:{p}\_{1} : If a complex number zz satisfies dfrac1zR\\dfrac{1}{z}∈R , then zRz∈R ;

p_2:{p}\_{2} : If a complex number satisfies z2R{z}^{2}∈R , then zRz∈R ;

p_3:{p}\_{3} : If complex numbers z_1,z_2{z}\_{1},{z}\_{2} satisfy z_1z_2R{z}\_{1}{z}\_{2}∈R , then z_1=barz_2{z}\_{1}= \\bar{{z}\_{2}} ;

p_4:{p}\_{4} : If a complex number zRz∈R , then barzR\\bar{z}∈R ;

The true proposition(s) is/are
A: p_1,p_3{p}\_{1},{p}\_{3}
B: p_1,p_4{{p}\_{1}},{{p}\_{4}}
C: p_2,p_3{{p}\_{2}},{{p}\_{3}}
D: p_2,p_4{{p}\_{2}},{{p}\_{4}}

Multiple choice: answer with the letter of the option you want.

Official solution

We will analyze each proposition to determine its validity.

1. Proposition p_1{p}\_{1}: If a complex number zz satisfies dfrac1zR\\dfrac{1}{z}∈R , then zRz∈R .

Let z=a+biz=a+bi where a,bRa,b∈R. If dfrac1z=dfrac1a+bi=dfracabia2+b2R\\dfrac{1}{z} = \\dfrac{1}{a+bi} = \\dfrac{a−bi}{{a}^{2}+{b}^{2}} ∈R, then b=0b=0, which implies zRz∈R. Therefore, proposition p_1{p}\_{1} is true.

2. Proposition p_2{p}\_{2}: If a complex number satisfies z2R{z}^{2}∈R , then zRz∈R .

Let z=a+biz=a+bi where a,bRa,b∈R. If z2=a2b2+2abiR{z}^{2} = a^{2} - b^{2} + 2abi ∈R, then ab=0ab=0, which implies either a=0a=0 or b=0b=0. This means that zz could be a real number or a purely imaginary number. Therefore, proposition p_2{p}\_{2} is false.

3. Proposition p_3{p}\_{3}: If complex numbers z_1,z_2{z}\_{1},{z}\_{2} satisfy z_1z_2R{z}\_{1}{z}\_{2}∈R , then z_1=barz_2{z}\_{1}= \\bar{{z}\_{2}} .

Let z_1=a+bi{z}\_{1}=a+bi and z_2=c+di{z}\_{2}=c+di where a,b,c,dRa,b,c,d∈R. If z_1z_2=(acbd)+(ad+bc)iR{z}\_{1}{z}\_{2} = (ac-bd)+(ad+bc)i ∈R, then ad+bc=0ad+bc=0. However, this does not necessarily imply that z_1=barz_2{z}\_{1}= \\bar{{z}\_{2}} . Therefore, proposition p_3{p}\_{3} is false.

4. Proposition p_4{p}\_{4}: If a complex number zRz∈R , then barzR\\bar{z}∈R .

Let z=a+biz=a+bi where a,bRa,b∈R. If zRz∈R, then b=0b=0, which implies that z=az=a. Consequently, barz=aR\\bar{z}=a∈R. Therefore, proposition p_4{p}\_{4} is true.

The correct answer is B: p_1,p_4\boxed{{p}\_{1},{p}\_{4}}.

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