2016 AIME I Problem 7

Attempt Problem 7 of the 2016 AIME I 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 2016 AIME I solutions, or check the answer key.

All problems are used with official legal permission of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).

7.

For integers aa and bb consider the complex number ab+2016ab+100(a+bab+100)i.\frac{\sqrt{ab + 2016}}{ab + 100} - \left(\frac{\sqrt{|a + b|}}{ab + 100}\right)i. Find the number of ordered pairs of integers (a,b)(a, b) such that this complex number is a real number.

Answer: 103
Concepts:complex numberSimon’s Favorite Factoring Trickcasework
Difficulty rating: 2920
Solution:

If ab+20160,ab + 2016 \ge 0, the first term is real, so the number is real exactly when a+b=0,\sqrt{|a + b|} = 0, that is b=a.b = -a. Then ab+2016=2016a20ab + 2016 = 2016 - a^2 \ge 0 forces a44,|a| \le 44, and the denominator ab+100=100a2ab + 100 = 100 - a^2 rules out a=±10.a = \pm 10. That gives 892=8789 - 2 = 87 pairs.

If ab+2016<0,ab + 2016 \lt 0, then ab+2016=iab2016,\sqrt{ab + 2016} = i\sqrt{-ab - 2016}, so the whole number is ab2016a+bab+100i,\frac{\sqrt{-ab - 2016} - \sqrt{|a + b|}}{ab + 100}\,i, which is real exactly when ab2016=a+b.-ab - 2016 = |a + b|. Note a+b=0a + b = 0 is impossible here since a2=2016a^2 = 2016 has no integer solution. For a+b>0a + b \gt 0 the equation becomes ab+a+b+2016=0,ab + a + b + 2016 = 0, that is (a+1)(b+1)=2015,(a + 1)(b + 1) = -2015, and for a+b<0a + b \lt 0 it becomes (a1)(b1)=2015.(a - 1)(b - 1) = -2015.

Since 2015=513312015 = 5 \cdot 13 \cdot 31 has 88 positive divisors, (a+1)(b+1)=2015(a+1)(b+1) = -2015 has 1616 ordered integer solutions, and a+b>0a + b \gt 0 holds exactly when the positive factor is the larger in absolute value: 88 solutions. Symmetrically the other case gives 88 more. In all of these ab+100=1916a+b0.ab + 100 = -1916 - |a + b| \ne 0. The total is 87+8+8=103.87 + 8 + 8 = 103.

← Problem 6#6
Full Exam

Problem 7 in Other Years