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k a April Highlights and 2025 AoPS Online Class Information
jlacosta   0
Apr 2, 2025
Spring is in full swing and summer is right around the corner, what are your plans? At AoPS Online our schedule has new classes starting now through July, so be sure to keep your skills sharp and be prepared for the Fall school year! Check out the schedule of upcoming classes below.

WOOT early bird pricing is in effect, don’t miss out! If you took MathWOOT Level 2 last year, no worries, it is all new problems this year! Our Worldwide Online Olympiad Training program is for high school level competitors. AoPS designed these courses to help our top students get the deep focus they need to succeed in their specific competition goals. Check out the details at this link for all our WOOT programs in math, computer science, chemistry, and physics.

Looking for summer camps in math and language arts? Be sure to check out the video-based summer camps offered at the Virtual Campus that are 2- to 4-weeks in duration. There are middle and high school competition math camps as well as Math Beasts camps that review key topics coupled with fun explorations covering areas such as graph theory (Math Beasts Camp 6), cryptography (Math Beasts Camp 7-8), and topology (Math Beasts Camp 8-9)!

Be sure to mark your calendars for the following events:
[list][*]April 3rd (Webinar), 4pm PT/7:00pm ET, Learning with AoPS: Perspectives from a Parent, Math Camp Instructor, and University Professor
[*]April 8th (Math Jam), 4:30pm PT/7:30pm ET, 2025 MATHCOUNTS State Discussion
April 9th (Webinar), 4:00pm PT/7:00pm ET, Learn about Video-based Summer Camps at the Virtual Campus
[*]April 10th (Math Jam), 4:30pm PT/7:30pm ET, 2025 MathILy and MathILy-Er Math Jam: Multibackwards Numbers
[*]April 22nd (Webinar), 4:00pm PT/7:00pm ET, Competitive Programming at AoPS (USACO).[/list]
Our full course list for upcoming classes is below:
All classes run 7:30pm-8:45pm ET/4:30pm - 5:45pm PT unless otherwise noted.

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0 replies
jlacosta
Apr 2, 2025
0 replies
k i Adding contests to the Contest Collections
dcouchman   1
N Apr 5, 2023 by v_Enhance
Want to help AoPS remain a valuable Olympiad resource? Help us add contests to AoPS's Contest Collections.

Find instructions and a list of contests to add here: https://artofproblemsolving.com/community/c40244h1064480_contests_to_add
1 reply
dcouchman
Sep 9, 2019
v_Enhance
Apr 5, 2023
k i Zero tolerance
ZetaX   49
N May 4, 2019 by NoDealsHere
Source: Use your common sense! (enough is enough)
Some users don't want to learn, some other simply ignore advises.
But please follow the following guideline:


To make it short: ALWAYS USE YOUR COMMON SENSE IF POSTING!
If you don't have common sense, don't post.


More specifically:

For new threads:


a) Good, meaningful title:
The title has to say what the problem is about in best way possible.
If that title occured already, it's definitely bad. And contest names aren't good either.
That's in fact a requirement for being able to search old problems.

Examples:
Bad titles:
- "Hard"/"Medium"/"Easy" (if you find it so cool how hard/easy it is, tell it in the post and use a title that tells us the problem)
- "Number Theory" (hey guy, guess why this forum's named that way¿ and is it the only such problem on earth¿)
- "Fibonacci" (there are millions of Fibonacci problems out there, all posted and named the same...)
- "Chinese TST 2003" (does this say anything about the problem¿)
Good titles:
- "On divisors of a³+2b³+4c³-6abc"
- "Number of solutions to x²+y²=6z²"
- "Fibonacci numbers are never squares"


b) Use search function:
Before posting a "new" problem spend at least two, better five, minutes to look if this problem was posted before. If it was, don't repost it. If you have anything important to say on topic, post it in one of the older threads.
If the thread is locked cause of this, use search function.

Update (by Amir Hossein). The best way to search for two keywords in AoPS is to input
[code]+"first keyword" +"second keyword"[/code]
so that any post containing both strings "first word" and "second form".


c) Good problem statement:
Some recent really bad post was:
[quote]$lim_{n\to 1}^{+\infty}\frac{1}{n}-lnn$[/quote]
It contains no question and no answer.
If you do this, too, you are on the best way to get your thread deleted. Write everything clearly, define where your variables come from (and define the "natural" numbers if used). Additionally read your post at least twice before submitting. After you sent it, read it again and use the Edit-Button if necessary to correct errors.


For answers to already existing threads:


d) Of any interest and with content:
Don't post things that are more trivial than completely obvious. For example, if the question is to solve $x^{3}+y^{3}=z^{3}$, do not answer with "$x=y=z=0$ is a solution" only. Either you post any kind of proof or at least something unexpected (like "$x=1337, y=481, z=42$ is the smallest solution). Someone that does not see that $x=y=z=0$ is a solution of the above without your post is completely wrong here, this is an IMO-level forum.
Similar, posting "I have solved this problem" but not posting anything else is not welcome; it even looks that you just want to show off what a genius you are.

e) Well written and checked answers:
Like c) for new threads, check your solutions at least twice for mistakes. And after sending, read it again and use the Edit-Button if necessary to correct errors.



To repeat it: ALWAYS USE YOUR COMMON SENSE IF POSTING!


Everything definitely out of range of common sense will be locked or deleted (exept for new users having less than about 42 posts, they are newbies and need/get some time to learn).

The above rules will be applied from next monday (5. march of 2007).
Feel free to discuss on this here.
49 replies
ZetaX
Feb 27, 2007
NoDealsHere
May 4, 2019
[$100 IN PRIZES] WAMO 3 (Washington Math Olympiad)
Alex_Yang   12
N 10 minutes ago by Alex_Yang
We, Alex Yang, James Yang, Kaiyuan Mao, Laura Wang, Patrick Sun, Ryan Chen, Ryan Tang, and Wesley Wu, as well as Texan impostor Bruce Shu, present to you the third edition of the Washington Math Olympiad (WAMO)!


[center]IMAGE[/center]

We present WAMO 3, the third installment of the Washington Math Olympiad. We strive to represent and strengthen the Washington State math community by providing yet another high-quality contest. Our team has gained plenty of experience and expertise, and our team has guaranteed that this contest will be as high-quality as possible.

Quick Facts:
[list=disc]
[*] MathDash has generously offered us the opportunity to host WAMO 3. The competition link is at https://mathdash.com/contest/wamo-3/ and will be published before the competition start date.
[*] The competition will be held between Saturday, April 12th to Saturday, April 26th with 15 Short-Answer Problems in 75 Minutes. MathDash will autotime your test.
[*] There are 100 dollars worth of prize money!
[*] Make sure you have enough time to complete the test in one sitting, as there is no way to pause the test!
[*] Please join the WAMO Discord before the test. The Discord link is on the MathDash page.
[*] Check out our website (courtesy of Andrew Chen) at https://wamomath.org!
[/list]
Potential FAQs:
[list=disc]
[*] Who is the intended audience?
[*] Do I have to do anything before the test?
[*] What are the qualifications of WAMO staff?
[/list]
So what are you waiting for? Good luck and have fun! :D
12 replies
Alex_Yang
Yesterday at 4:31 PM
Alex_Yang
10 minutes ago
Predicted AMC 8 Scores
megahertz13   149
N 13 minutes ago by Yrock
$\begin{tabular}{c|c|c|c}Username & Grade & AMC8 Score \\ \hline
megahertz13 & 5 & 23 \\
\end{tabular}$
149 replies
megahertz13
Jan 25, 2024
Yrock
13 minutes ago
Integral solutions
KDS   4
N 34 minutes ago by Maximilian113
Source: Romania TST 1993
Prove that the equation $ (x+y)^n=x^m+y^m$ has a unique solution in integers with $ x>y>0$ and $ m,n>1$.
4 replies
KDS
Jul 12, 2009
Maximilian113
34 minutes ago
Modular Arithmetic Handout
MathCosine   16
N 38 minutes ago by MathCosine
Hi everyone,

I recently created a handout on modular arithmetic for a local math club. I thought it would help quite a lot with understanding basic properties, as modular arithmetic is a very popular intermediate step in number theory problems, so I decided to leave it here as a resource for anyone who needs it. Feel free to share it around, and hope it helps!

Sincerely,
MathCosine
16 replies
MathCosine
Apr 7, 2025
MathCosine
38 minutes ago
F=(F^3+F^3)/9-2F^3
Yiyj1   0
44 minutes ago
Source: 101 Algebra Problems for the AMSP
Define the Fibonacci sequence $F_n$ as $$F_1=F_2=1, F_{n+1}+F_n=F_{n-1}$$fir $n \in \mathbb{N}$. Prove that $$F_{2n}=\dfrac{F_{2n+2}^3+F_{2n-2}^3}{9}-2F_{2n}^3$$for all $n \ge 2$.
0 replies
Yiyj1
44 minutes ago
0 replies
idk12345678 Math Contest
idk12345678   0
44 minutes ago
Welcome to the 1st idk12345678 Math Contest.
You have 4 hours. You do not have to prove your answers.
Post your answers in a hide tag and I will tell you your score.*


The contest is attached to the post

Clarifications


*I mightve done them wrong feel free to ask about an answer
0 replies
idk12345678
44 minutes ago
0 replies
4 lines concurrent
Zavyk09   2
N an hour ago by aidenkim119
Source: Homework
Let $ABC$ be triangle with circumcenter $(O)$ and orthocenter $H$. $BH, CH$ intersect $(O)$ again at $K, L$ respectively. Lines through $H$ parallel to $AB, AC$ intersects $AC, AB$ at $E, F$ respectively. Point $D$ such that $HKDL$ is a parallelogram. Prove that lines $KE, LF$ and $AD$ are concurrent at a point on $OH$.
2 replies
Zavyk09
Yesterday at 11:51 AM
aidenkim119
an hour ago
Inequality => square
Rushil   13
N an hour ago by mqoi_KOLA
Source: INMO 1998 Problem 4
Suppose $ABCD$ is a cyclic quadrilateral inscribed in a circle of radius one unit. If $AB \cdot BC \cdot CD \cdot DA \geq 4$, prove that $ABCD$ is a square.
13 replies
Rushil
Oct 7, 2005
mqoi_KOLA
an hour ago
where a, b, c are positive real numbers
eyesofgod1930   2
N an hour ago by sqing
where $a, b, c$ are positive real numbers.Prove that
$\frac{4}{\sqrt{a^{2}+b^{2}+c^{2}+4}}-\frac{9}{\sqrt{(a+b)\sqrt{(a+2c)(b+2c)}}}\leq \frac{5}{8}$
2 replies
eyesofgod1930
Jun 8, 2020
sqing
an hour ago
NT function debut
AshAuktober   4
N an hour ago by AshAuktober
Source: 2025 Nepal Practice TST 3 P2 of 3; Own
Let $f$ be a function taking in positive integers and outputting nonnegative integers, defined as follows:
$f(m)$ is the number of positive integers $n$ with $n \le m$ such that the equation $$an + bm = m^2 + n^2 + 1$$has an integer solution $(a, b)$.
Find all positive integers $x$ such that$f(x) \ne 0$ and $$f(f(x)) = f(x) - 1.$$(Adit Aggarwal, India.)
4 replies
AshAuktober
Yesterday at 3:53 PM
AshAuktober
an hour ago
Inspired by 2025 Nepal
sqing   1
N 2 hours ago by sqing
Source: Own
Let $ a, b, c $ be positive reals such that $ a+b +c+abc = 4 $. Prove that
$$ \frac{1}{a+1} + \frac{1}{b+1} + \frac{1}{c+ 1}\leq\frac{3}{2}(2 - abc) $$$$ \frac{1}{ab+1} + \frac{1}{bc+1} + \frac{1}{ca + 1}\leq\frac{3}{2}(2 - abc) $$
1 reply
sqing
2 hours ago
sqing
2 hours ago
Inspired by Ruji2018252
sqing   0
2 hours ago
Source: Own
Let $ a,b,c $ be reals such that $ a^2+b^2+c^2-2a-4b-4c=7. $ Prove that
$$ -4\leq 2a+b+2c\leq 20$$$$5-4\sqrt 3\leq a+b+c\leq 5+4\sqrt 3$$$$ 11-4\sqrt {14}\leq a+2b+3c\leq 11+4\sqrt {14}$$
0 replies
sqing
2 hours ago
0 replies
Isos Trap
MithsApprentice   38
N 2 hours ago by eg4334
Source: USAMO 1999 Problem 6
Let $ABCD$ be an isosceles trapezoid with $AB \parallel CD$. The inscribed circle $\omega$ of triangle $BCD$ meets $CD$ at $E$. Let $F$ be a point on the (internal) angle bisector of $\angle DAC$ such that $EF \perp CD$. Let the circumscribed circle of triangle $ACF$ meet line $CD$ at $C$ and $G$. Prove that the triangle $AFG$ is isosceles.
38 replies
MithsApprentice
Oct 3, 2005
eg4334
2 hours ago
Funny function that there isn't exist
ItzsleepyXD   0
2 hours ago
Source: Own, Modified from old problem
Determine all functions $f\colon\mathbb{Z}_{>0}\to\mathbb{Z}_{>0}$ such that, for all positive integers $m$ and $n$,
$$ m^{\phi(n)}+n^{\phi(m)} \mid f(m)^n + f(n)^m$$
0 replies
ItzsleepyXD
2 hours ago
0 replies
MAA finally wrote sum good number theory
IAmTheHazard   95
N Mar 30, 2025 by Magnetoninja
Source: 2021 AIME I P14
For any positive integer $a,$ $\sigma(a)$ denotes the sum of the positive integer divisors of $a.$ Let $n$ be the least positive integer such that $\sigma(a^n)-1$ is divisible by $2021$ for all positive integers $a.$ Find the sum of the prime factors in the prime factorization of $n.$
95 replies
IAmTheHazard
Mar 11, 2021
Magnetoninja
Mar 30, 2025
MAA finally wrote sum good number theory
G H J
G H BBookmark kLocked kLocked NReply
Source: 2021 AIME I P14
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Fruitz
138 posts
#84 • 1 Y
Y by dolphinday
thisismath1234 wrote:
How is this a P14? Anyone saying it should be a JMO question (even one that required proof) is also extremely misguided. Anyone who knows any number theory can solve this instantly. In addition, anyone who put 35 as an answer probably doesn't actually know number theory and just memorized formulas. It should be instantly apparent that you are not done by requiring 42, 46 to divide n.

Only around 2.4% of competitors were able to solve this problem, so I think its placement is fine for a P14. Additionally, I think it is not that people "memorize formulas", rather that people glossed over a few cases. Also, I think the way this problem is structured would be nice for a JMO P1/4.
Attachments:
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thisismath1234
43 posts
#85
Y by
dolphinday wrote:
So, we can compute the least positive integer $n$ so that the expression is divisible by $43$ and $47$. By FLT, $a^{42} - 1 \equiv 0\pmod{43}$, for $a$ being relatively prime to $43$.
This is why $n$ has to be divisible by $43$, for the cases where $a$ is not relatively prime to $43$.

This line is just wrong. We care about divisibility by of n by 43 when p is 1 mod 43, not when p (or a) is 0 mod 43. Did you actually do the problem or just read the solutions above and post something that went along the same lines
This post has been edited 1 time. Last edited by thisismath1234, Oct 31, 2023, 2:16 AM
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dolphinday
1319 posts
#86
Y by
thisismath1234 wrote:
dolphinday wrote:
So, we can compute the least positive integer $n$ so that the expression is divisible by $43$ and $47$. By FLT, $a^{42} - 1 \equiv 0\pmod{43}$, for $a$ being relatively prime to $43$.
This is why $n$ has to be divisible by $43$, for the cases where $a$ is not relatively prime to $43$.

This line is just wrong. We care about divisibility by of n by 43 when p is 1 mod 43, not when p (or a) is 0 mod 43. Did you actually do the problem or just read the solutions above and post something that went along the same lines

Thank you for catching that mistake but it's quite rude of you to assume that, when I genuinely misunderstood something.
I will make sure to correct that, but all it seems you've been doing is criticizing other people, calling out the problem for being too easy and just generally being rude. Can you avoid that please
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thisismath1234
43 posts
#87
Y by
I'm sorry if my words seemed harsh; I didn't mean to be unkind and will be more mindful in the future. I shouldn't have assumed that you did not do the problem.
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dolphinday
1319 posts
#88
Y by
thisismath1234 wrote:
I'm sorry if my words seemed harsh; I didn't mean to be unkind and will be more mindful in the future. I shouldn't have assumed that you did not do the problem.

It's ok, no worries and also thanks for catching my mistake. Probably if you didn't, I wouldn't have ever noticed :)
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OlympusHero
17020 posts
#89
Y by
mira74 wrote:
wait I think i see a couple posts saying this so imma just point out that you dont need $\varphi(2021)$ to divide $n$. just having $\varphi(2021)/2$ divide it is enough.

In general, for $a^k \equiv 1 \pmod{n}$ for all $a$ relatively prime to $n$, we don't need $\varphi(n) \mid k$. The actual number is given by the Carmichael Function, which is sorta the lcm of the totients of the prime powers, but is weird when there's a power of $2$ dividing $n$.

I was just solving this problem and had a question about it regarding this: I had the exact solution as @vsamc in #4, but this is technically wrong since it would be the LCM of $2021$ and HALF the totient of $2021$, not the totient of $2021$. I was wondering how, in general, you would know whether it is half the totient or something else instead of just the totient itself? I looked and didn't find any general formula for the Carmichael function, so I was curious about this. For this problem, it wouldn't make a difference to the answer, but it might for some other problem so I wanted to know. Thanks in advance!
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OlympusHero
17020 posts
#90
Y by
Sorry to double post but I'm pretty sure I figured it out - 2021 is 43 * 47, so you split it up into mod 43 and 47, which are both prime, so their totients are 42 and 46. Thus the Carmichael function would give lcm(42,46) which is indeed half of the totient of 2021.
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v_Enhance
6872 posts
#91 • 1 Y
Y by sanaops9
Sorry to double post but I'm pretty sure I figured it out - 2021 is 43 * 47, so you split it up into mod 43 and 47, which are both prime, so their totients are 42 and 46. Thus the Carmichael function would give lcm(42,46) which is indeed half of the totient of 2021.

Yes, that's exactly right.

The general formula for the Carmichael function is stated at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carmichael_function#Recurrence_for_%CE%BB(n) (although it's called a "recurrence" in Wikipedia right now, I think that's a bit misleading). As you've already figured out, it's just the LCM of Carmichael function on each individual prime (power).
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de-Kirschbaum
189 posts
#92
Y by
If $2021|\sigma(a^n)-1$ for all integers $a$, then we can consider prime integers first. If $a=p$, then we want $\sigma(p^n)-1 \equiv 0 \mod{43}$ and $\sigma(p^n)-1 \equiv 0 \mod{47}$. First consider the 43 case. Writing out the LHS we have that $\frac{p^{n+1}-1}{p-1}-1 \equiv 0 \mod{43} \implies \frac{p^{n+1}-1}{p-1} \equiv 1 \mod{43}$. Now there are two things we must consider. First, if $p-1, 43$ are coprime, then division is defined in mod 43 and we can just multiply it out. In that case, $p^{n+1}-1 \equiv p-1 \mod{43} \implies p(p^n-1) \equiv 0 \mod{43}$. Of course, if $p=43$ this is true, but we need to ensure this is true for all $p \neq 43$. In order to do that, we must have $p^n-1 \equiv 0 \mod{43}$. FLT guarantees this is true when $42 | n$, and we will take it because there probably exists some prime that has that as the smallest period.

If $p-1, 43$ aren't coprime, then their gcd is 43 since 43 is a prime. That means we can write $p-1=43k \implies p=43k+1$. Thus consider the original expression of the sigma function $\sigma(p^n)=1+p+...+p^n \equiv 1+1+...+1 \equiv n+1 \mod{43}$. We want $n+1-1 \equiv n \equiv 0 \mod{43}$, so $43|n$. By similar analysis we can get $46|n, 47|n$. So we know that the least $n$ right now is $lcm(42,43,46,47)$.

Now consider any composite number $a=p_1^{e_1}p_2^{e_2}...p_m^{e_m}$. We have that $\sigma(a^n)-1 \equiv \frac{p_1^{ne_1+1}-1}{p_1-1}...\frac{p_m^{ne_m+1}-1}{p_m-1} -1 \mod{2021}$. Note that $n$ actually ensures each part of this multiplication to be $1 \mod{2021}$, as $n$ guarantees $\sigma(p^n) \equiv 1 \mod{2021}$ for any p. Thus, we just have $1-1 \equiv 0 \mod{2021}$ and we do not need to modify $n$ further.
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gladIasked
632 posts
#93
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fairly straightforward

We want $\sigma(a^n) \equiv 1\pmod{2021}$. Because of the multiplicativity of $\sigma$, we only need check $a = p^k$, where $p$ is a prime. Note that $$\sigma((p^k)^n) = 1 + p + p^2 + \cdots + p^{kn}$$. Our original modular congruence becomes \begin{align*}1 + p + p^2 + \cdots + p^{kn}&\equiv 1\pmod{2021}\\ \iff p + p^2 + \cdots p^{kn} &\equiv 0\pmod{2021}\\ \iff 1 + p + \cdots + p^{kn-1}&\equiv 0\pmod{2021} \\ \iff \frac{p^{kn}-1}{p-1}&\equiv 0\pmod{2021}\end{align*}This implies that $p^{kn} \equiv 1\pmod{2021}$. Breaking this up with CRT, we have $p^{kn} \equiv 1\pmod{43}$ and $p^{kn}\equiv 1\pmod{47}$, from which we deduce (via FLT) that $42\mid n$ and $46\mid n$. However, this fails when either $v_{43}(p^{kn} - 1) = v_{43}(p-1)$ or $v_{47}(p^{kn} - 1) = v_{47}(p-1)$. Using LTE, we see that $$v_{43}(p^{kn} - 1) = v_{43}(p-1) + v_{43}(n)$$. We need $v_{43}(n) > 0$, so $43\mid n$. We can similarly deduce that $47\mid n$. Thus, our answer will just be $n = \text{lcm}(42, 43, 46, 47)$, which gives us the final answer of $\boxed{125}$.
This post has been edited 2 times. Last edited by gladIasked, Jan 14, 2024, 5:07 PM
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Cusofay
85 posts
#94
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We know that $\sigma (a^n)-1=\prod_{1\leq i\leq k}(1+p_i+p_i^2+\dots+p_i^{ne_i})-1$. Thus, we contend just need to find the smallest $n$ for which $\frac{p(p^n-1)}{p-1} \equiv 0 \pmod{2021}$. If $43,47\mid p-1$ then using LTE we find that $2021\mid$. Otherwise we use euler's totient theorem and if $p=47,43$ then $ord_{43},ord_{47}\mid \Phi(2021)$. Hence $n=1952286$

$$\mathbb{Q.E.D.}$$
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L13832
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#95 • 2 Y
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\begin{align*}
    &\text{We need}\; \sigma(a^n)-1 \equiv 0 \pmod {2021}.
    \;\text{Checking for values:} \\
    &[b]a=1:[/b] \sigma(1^n)-1=0 \;\text{so true for all n.}\\
    &[b]a=p[/b], \text{(p prime)}: \;\sigma(p^n)-1=\frac{p(p^n-1)}{p-1} \equiv 0 \pmod{2021}.\\
    &\text{Case I: p-1 has no 43s or 47s in its prime factorisation then it is easy to see that}\\&\; p(p^n-1)\equiv0 \pmod {2021} \; \text{we have to show when} \; p^n \equiv 1 \pmod{43} \; \text{and} \\ &\; p^n \equiv 1 \pmod{47},\; \text{n=42c and n=46d.} \;\text{So,} \;\text{n}=\text{LCM}(42,46)=42 \cdot 23.\\
    &\text{Case II: p-1 has 43 or 47 in prime factorisation}, \\& \text{First we look if 43 is there}\; p-1=43^ke \\
    &\Rightarrow p^n-1=43^{k+1}f\Rightarrow \boxed{p-1 \equiv 43^ke\pmod{43^{k+1}}} \\& \Rightarrow p^n \equiv (1+43^ke)^n \equiv n43^ke+1 \equiv 1\pmod{43^{k+1}} \\& \Rightarrow n43^ke \equiv 0 \pmod {43^{k+1}} \Rightarrow 43 \vert n.
   \\& \text{Similarly we try for when 47 is there in prime factorisation of $p-1$ we get}\;  47\vert n\\
   & \Rightarrow n=\operatorname{lcm}(42,43,46,47)\\
   &[b]a is composite[/b]\\
   &\text{Let}\; a=\prod_{i=1}^{u}p_i^{e_i} \;\text{Note that} \; \sigma(a) \text{is a multiplicative} \\
&\text{function:} \;\sigma(a)=\sigma\left(\prod_{i=1}^{u}p_i^{e_i}\right)=\prod_{i=1}^{u}\sigma\left(p_i^{e_i}\right), \; \text{as this product of} \text{is over all divisors of a.}\\
&\text{At}\;  n=\operatorname{lcm}(42,43,46,47),\; \text{we have}\; 
\sigma(a^n)-1=(\prod_{i=1}^{u}\sigma(p_i^{e_in}))-1 \equiv(\prod_{i=1}^{u}1)-1 \equiv 0\pmod{2021}.\\
&\text{The problems asks for the sum of the factors of n.}\\&n=\operatorname{lcm}(42,43,46,47)= 2\cdot3\cdot7\cdot23\cdot43\cdot47.\\
&\text{Therefore,}\; n=2+3+7+23+43+47=\boxed{\textbf{125}}
\end{align*}
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blueprimes
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#96
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Recall that $2021 = 43 \cdot 47$. We claim the minimal $n$ is $\text{lcm}(42, 43, 46, 47) = 2 \cdot 3 \cdot 7 \cdot 23 \cdot 43 \cdot 47$, yielding $\boxed{125}$ as the requested answer.

Consider an arbitrary prime $\gcd(p - 1, 2021) = 1$, allowing $a = p$ we want
\[1 + p + p^2 + \dots + p^n = \dfrac{p^{n + 1} - 1}{p - 1} \equiv 1 \pmod{2021} \iff p^{n + 1} \equiv p \pmod{2021}. \]Let $g_{43}$ and $g_{47}$ be arbitrary primitive roots of $43$ and $47$ respectively, by CRT and Dirichlet we can find a prime $p$ such that $p \equiv g_{43} \pmod{43}$ and $p \equiv g_{47} \pmod{47}$ which forces $\text{lcm}(43 - 1, 47 - 1) = \text{lcm}(42, 46) \mid n$.

On the other hand, if $\gcd(p - 1, 2021) \ne 1$, we have $p \equiv 1 \pmod{43}$ or $p \equiv 1 \pmod{47}$. Assume the former, plugging in $a = p$ gives
\[1 + p + p^2 + \dots + p^n \equiv n + 1 \equiv 1 \pmod{43} \iff 43 \mid n. \]A similar argument for $47$ means $47 \mid n$. Altogether, we get $43, 47 \mid n$.

From both of these cases we easily obtain $\text{lcm}(42, 43, 46, 47) \mid n$, it is easy to show sufficiency for $n = \text{lcm}(42, 43, 46, 47)$ (just generalize the form of $a$, use multiplicity, and re-iterate through the previous arguments) so we are done.
This post has been edited 1 time. Last edited by blueprimes, Dec 2, 2024, 3:03 AM
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AshAuktober
973 posts
#97
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Obtain from various values of $a$ that \[2021\phi(2021)\mid n\]is necessary,and then that it is sufficient,yielding 125.
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Magnetoninja
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#98
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Straightfoward for its placement:

Let $a=p_1^{e_1}*p_2^{e_2}*\cdots{p_k^{e_k}}$. $a^n=p_1^{ne_1}*p_2^{ne_2}*\cdots{p_k^{ne_k}} \Longrightarrow \sigma{(a^n)}=\prod_{j=1}^{k}{\sum_{i=0}^{e_j}{(p_j^i)}}=\prod_{j=1}^{k}{\frac{p_j^{ne_j+1}-1}{p_j-1}}$. Let prime $p|2021$. By induction, if $\sigma{(a_n)}\equiv 1\pmod{p}$, we also need $\sigma{(aq^{e_q})^n}=\prod_{j=1}^{k}{\sum_{i=0}^{e_j}{(p_j^i)}}*\frac{q^{ne_q+1}-1}{q-1} \equiv 1\pmod{p}$ so $\frac{q^{ne_q+1}-1}{q-1}\equiv 1\pmod{p}$ for all $q, e_q$. The base case is $a=1$, which is true. Now, if $q\neq{1}\pmod{p}$, then $q^{ne_1+1}-1\equiv q-1\pmod{p} \Longrightarrow q^{ne_q}=(q^{e_q})^n\equiv 1\pmod{p}$. By Fermat's Little Theorem, we need $p-1|n$ to satisfy this congruence for all $q, e_q$. If $q\equiv 1\pmod{p}$, then $(1+q+q^2\cdots{+q^{ne_q}})\equiv \underbrace{1+1\cdots{1}}_{ne_q+1}\equiv ne_q+1\equiv 1\pmod{p} \Longrightarrow n\equiv 0\pmod{p}$. Therefore $n(n-1)|p$. In our case $p=43, 47$, so we get $\text{lcm}{(42, 43, 46, 47)}=2*3*7*23*43*47$, giving us $\boxed{125}$.
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