2021 AIME I Problem 7

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Concepts:trigonometryDiophantine Equationgreatest common divisorcasework

Difficulty rating: 2920

7.

Find the number of pairs (m,n)(m, n) of positive integers with 1m<n301 \le m \lt n \le 30 such that there exists a real number xx satisfying sin(mx)+sin(nx)=2.\sin(mx) + \sin(nx) = 2.

Solution:

Since each sine is at most 1,1, we need sin(mx)=sin(nx)=1,\sin(mx) = \sin(nx) = 1, i.e. mx=π2+2πamx = \frac{\pi}{2} + 2\pi a and nx=π2+2πbnx = \frac{\pi}{2} + 2\pi b for integers a,b.a, b. Eliminating xx gives n(4a+1)=m(4b+1),n(4a + 1) = m(4b + 1), that is, 4(namb)=mn.4(na - mb) = m - n. As aa and bb range over the integers, nambna - mb takes exactly the multiples of g=gcd(m,n),g = \gcd(m, n), so a solution exists if and only if 4gnm4g \mid n - m — equivalently, writing m=gmm = gm' and n=gn,n = gn', if and only if mn(mod4)m' \equiv n' \pmod 4 (which forces both mm' and nn' odd).

For each gg we count coprime pairs m<n30/gm' \lt n' \le \lfloor 30/g \rfloor of odd numbers in the same class mod 4.4. For g=1:g = 1: among 1,3,,291, 3, \ldots, 29 there are eight numbers 1\equiv 1 and seven 3(mod4),\equiv 3 \pmod 4, giving (82)+(72)=49\binom{8}{2} + \binom{7}{2} = 49 pairs, of which the five pairs {3,15},\{3,15\}, {3,27},\{3,27\}, {9,21},\{9,21\}, {15,27},\{15,27\}, {5,25}\{5,25\} are not coprime, leaving 44.44. For g=2g = 2 (odd numbers up to 1515): (42)+(42)=12\binom{4}{2} + \binom{4}{2} = 12 minus the pair {3,15}\{3,15\} gives 11.11. For g=3g = 3 (up to 1010): the pairs {1,5},{1,9},{5,9},{3,7}\{1,5\}, \{1,9\}, \{5,9\}, \{3,7\} give 4.4. For g=4g = 4 (up to 77): {1,5}\{1,5\} and {3,7}\{3,7\} give 2.2. For g=5g = 5 and g=6:g = 6: only {1,5},\{1,5\}, giving 11 each. For g7g \ge 7 we would need two distinct odd numbers up to 30/g4\lfloor 30/g \rfloor \le 4 in the same class mod 4,4, which is impossible.

The total is 44+11+4+2+1+1=63.44 + 11 + 4 + 2 + 1 + 1 = 63.

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