1992 AIME Problem 10

Attempt Problem 10 of the 1992 AIME below, then check your answer against the professionally curated solution from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 1992 AIME solutions, or check the answer key.

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10.

Consider the region AA in the complex plane that consists of all points zz such that both z40\frac{z}{40} and 40z\frac{40}{\overline z} have real and imaginary parts between 00 and 1,1, inclusive. What is the integer that is nearest the area of A?A?

Answer: 572
Concepts:complex numbercircle areainclusion-exclusion
Difficulty rating: 2650
Small Hint:

Write z=x+iyz=x+iy; the first condition gives a square, and the second gives two circle inequalities

Big Hint:

Subtract from the 4040-by-4040 square the union of two semicircles, accounting for their lens-shaped overlap

Solution:

Write z=x+iy.z=x+iy. The condition on z40\frac{z}{40} gives 0x400\leq x\leq40 and 0y40.0\leq y\leq40. Since 40z=40xx2+y2+i40yx2+y2,\frac{40}{\overline z}=\frac{40x}{x^2+y^2}+i\frac{40y}{x^2+y^2}, the other condition requires x2+y240xx^2+y^2\geq40x and x2+y240y.x^2+y^2\geq40y. Thus, within the square, we remove two semicircles of radius 20.20.

Their overlap is the lens formed by two radius-2020 circles whose centers are 20220\sqrt2 apart. Its area is 200π400.200\pi-400. Hence the removed union has area 400π(200π400)400\pi-(200\pi-400), or 200π+400.200\pi+400. Let KK denote the area of A.A. Then K=1600(200π+400)=1200200π571.68.\begin{aligned}K&=1600-(200\pi+400)\\&=1200-200\pi\\&\approx571.68.\end{aligned} The nearest integer is 572.572.

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