Exercise 1487Number theory › Divisibility and gcdHigh schoolAdded 2 Nov 2026
Solving $\divisibility(a,b)+\operatorname{lcm}(a,b)=9+b$
#divisibility#lcm#Diophantine equation
Statement
Find all positive integers such that
Hint
Let , , with . Show that .
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Solution
Reduction. Let , , , with . Then , and the equation becomes
i.e.
So .
Case analysis. .
- : , so , i.e. . With , solve the divisor cases.
- : , so , i.e. .
- : , so , i.e. , hence (since ). Then and arbitrary.
Conclusion. The full solution set is obtained by checking the finitely many divisor cases for each . For , the solutions are , .