Number theoryDifficulty 7.5National Olympiad, round 2Prove itRomania
Given positive integers k and m, show that m and (kn) are coprime for infinitely many integers n≥k.
Solution
Let n=k+lmk!, where l is an arbitrary nonnegative integer, let p be any prime factor of m, and let ph be the highest power of p that divides k! — that is, ph divides k! but ph+1 does not. Notice that n≡k(modph+1), to deduce that n(n−1)⋯(n−k+1)≡k!(modph+1), so ph is also the highest power of p that divides the product n(n−1)⋯(n−k+1). Consequently, p does not divide (kn), so m and (kn) are indeed coprime.
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Source: MathNet,
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