Consider two solid spherical balls, one centered at with radius , and the other centered at with radius . How many points with only integer coordinates (lattice points) are there in the intersection of the
balls?
Problem 1626
Pick one
Official solution
1. First, we need to determine the range of values for which the two spheres intersect. The first sphere is centered at with radius 6, and the second sphere is centered at with radius .
2. The equation of the first sphere is:
The equation of the second sphere is:
3. To find the range of values, we need to consider the vertical distance between the centers of the spheres. The distance between the centers is:
4. The sum of the radii of the two spheres is:
5. Since the distance between the centers is less than the sum of the radii, the spheres intersect. The intersection occurs within the range of values where both spheres' equations are satisfied.
6. We need to find the range of values for which the intersection occurs. The intersection will be within the range:
Simplifying, we get:
7. Similarly, for the second sphere:
Simplifying, we get:
8. The intersection of these ranges is:
Since must be an integer, the only possible value is .
9. Substituting into the equations of the spheres, we get:
Simplifying, we get:
10. For the second sphere:
Simplifying, we get:
11. Notice that all satisfying the second inequality also satisfy the first one. Therefore, we need to find all the lattice points that satisfy .
12. The possible integer solutions for and are:
13. Each of these pairs corresponds to a point with .
Conclusion:
There are 13 lattice points in the intersection of the two spheres.
The final answer is