Number Theory

and its Applications

Satyabrota Kundu
Supriyo Mazumder

Levant Books
India
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First published 2022
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 Preface

From ancient times, number theory has always occupied the unquestioned
historical importance of the subject. Number Theory is both pure and applied
and at the same time both classical and modern. It has been the objective of
the authors for quite some time to write an accessible and inviting textbook to
number theory. Foremost, the present textbook will create an effective instru-
ment for both teaching and learning. The authors aim to integrate the richness
and beauty of the subject and at the same time the book is full of unexpected
usefulness. In the present text, the authors have worked hard to assemble many
contrasting aspects of number theory into one standard textbook.
This book is ideal for undergraduate and postgraduate level students. Cer-
tain levels of mathematical reasoning, basic algebra and real analysis are re-
quired as prerequisites to study the materials of our textbook. This textbook
is designed in such a manner that it will serve the purpose for a wide range of
readers.
Some effort has been devoted to make the first few chapters less challenging,
but gradually the chapters become more challenging. At each juncture, the
instructor has to decide how deeply to pursue a particular topic before moving
ahead to a new one.
Chapter I introduces important topics like well-ordering property, principle
of mathematical induction, Binomial theorem and many more in establishing
results to study the materials of the textbook.
Chapter II introduces the notion of divisibility, where with the help of the
Euclidean algorithm, the greatest common divisors of a set of integers are in-
troduced. Also the least common multiple and linear Diophantine equations are
discussed.
Chapter III deals with prime factorization, the fundamental theorem of arith-
metic and factorization techniques are covered.
Chapter IV introduces congruences and develops their fundamental proper-
ties. systems of linear congruences in one or more unknowns are discussed. The
Chinese remainder theorem is also developed.
Chapter V is concerned with Fermat’s Little theorem and Wilson’s theorem.
Wilson’s theorem gives a congruence for factorials. Pseudo primes, strong pseu-
doprimes and absolute pseudoprimes(Carmichael numbers) are also introduced.
Chapter VI gives a thorough discussion of the sum and number of divisors,
Möbius function and greatest integer function.
vi Number Theory and its Applications

Chapter VII develops Euler’s φ-function, Euler’s theorem and properties of

Euler’s φ-function. Explicit formulae are developed for these functions.
Chapter VIII is devoted to the discussion of the order of an integer and of
the primitive roots. Indices, which are similar to logarithms, are introduced.
Primality testing based on primitive roots are described.
Chapter IX includes discussions on quadratic residues and the famous law
of quadratic reciprocity. The Legendre and Jacobi symbols are introduced and
algorithms for evaluating them are described.
Chapter X deals with Integers of Special forms where the special emphasis
is given on Perfect numbers, Mersenne primes and Fermat’s numbers.
Chapter XI treats simple finite and infinite continued fractions. Special at-
tention is paid to the Periodic fractions.
Chapter XII covers the study on few non-linear Diophantine equations, where
the various results on Pythagorean triples and Fermat’s Last theorem are done.
Chapter XIII deals with the study of Integers as sum of squares, which in-
cludes sum of two squares and sum of more than two squares.
Concluding chapter introduces the application part of number theory, where
the Fibonacci numbers, Pseudo-random numbers and basic cryptology have been
discussed. Here the Pseudo-random numbers and the techniques for generating
them are discussed. In cryptology, Caeser cipher, Block cipher, Exponentiation
cipher and RSA are based on modular arithmetic.
After each section of the text there are worked-out exercises set containing
problems of various levels of difficulty. Each set contains problems of a numerical
nature, which should be done to develop computational skills. At the end of
every chapter there is an exercise set to fine-tune the practice for the students.
Throughout the textbook, the readers will face some simple questions like Why!
and Verify! to make the topics interesting for them to study. At the end of the
textbook there is an extensive bibliography, where the lists of number theory
texts and references are included for interested readers who would like to go for
more details about some of the topics covered in the book.
Finally, the authors would like to express their heartfelt gratitude to their
respected teachers, friends and relatives, who provide constant support and in-
spiration in framing the book.
Contents

1 Prerequisites 1

2 Theory of Divisibility 15
2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.2 Divisibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
2.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.4 Greatest Common Divisor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.5 Least Common Multiple . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
2.6 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
2.7 Linear Diophantine Equations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
2.8 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
2.9 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

3 Prime Numbers 45
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
3.2 Primes & Fundamental Theorem of Arithmetic . . . . . . . . . . 46
3.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
3.4 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

4 Theory of Congruences 67
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
4.2 Congruences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
4.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
4.4 Linear Congruences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
4.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
4.6 System of Linear Congruences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
4.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
4.8 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
viii Number Theory and its Applications
5 Fermat’s Little Theorem 95
5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
5.2 Fermat’s Little Theorem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
5.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
5.4 Wilson’s Theorem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
5.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
5.6 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

6 Arithmetic Functions 113

6.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
6.2 The Sum and Number of Divisors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
6.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
6.4 Mobiüs μ-function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
6.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
6.6 Greatest Integer Function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
6.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
6.8 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

7 Euler’s Generalization and φ–function 145

7.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
7.2 Euler’s φ–function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
7.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
7.4 Euler’s Theorem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
7.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
7.6 Properties of φ–function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
7.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
7.8 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

8 Primitive Roots 167

8.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
8.2 Multiplicative Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
8.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
8.4 Primitive Roots for Primes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
8.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
8.6 Existence of Primitive Roots . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
8.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188
8.8 Index Arithmetic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192
8.9 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
8.10 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Contents ix
9 Theory of Quadratic Residues 203
9.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
9.2 Quadratic Residues and Nonresidues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203
9.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212
9.4 Quadratic Reciprocity Law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
9.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
9.6 The Jacobi Symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
9.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232
9.8 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

10 Integers of Special Forms 239

10.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
10.2 Perfect Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
10.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244
10.4 Mersenne Primes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247
10.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254
10.6 Fermat Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
10.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261
10.8 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

11 Continued Fractions 265

11.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265
11.2 Finite Continued Fractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
11.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273
11.4 Infinite Continued Fractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276
11.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
11.6 Periodic Fractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286
11.7 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
11.8 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293

12 Few Non-Linear Diophantine Equations 295

12.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295
12.2 Pythagorean Triples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296
12.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
12.4 Fermat’s Last Theorem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302
12.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
12.6 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
x Number Theory and its Applications

13 Integers as Sums of Squares 307

13.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
13.2 Sum of Two Squares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 307
13.3 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312
13.4 Sum of More than Two Squares . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
13.5 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319
13.6 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

14 Certain Applications on Number Theory 323

14.1 Fibonacci Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323
14.2 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331
14.3 Pseudo-random Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334
14.4 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338
14.5 Cryptology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339
14.6 Worked out Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
14.7 Exercises: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348

Bibliography 351

Index 353
1

Prerequisites

Number theory is an important and significant area of Mathematics. From

ancient times, it has had a substantial impact on human civilization. For fur-
ther development many great philosophers had contributed various aspects of
number theory. Among those was Pythagoras (569 − 500 B.C). His famous
Pythagorean theorem led many mathematicians to study squares and sum of
squares. He has given us notable Pythagorean triplets. After 200 years, another
Greek mathematician Euclid (350 B.C.) drew attention to the prime numbers.
His investigations were based on the renowned Euclidean algorithm for finding
greatest common divisors of two natural numbers. It plays a key role for eval-
uating prime factorisation of natural numbers. Few more studies on natural
numbers had been done by Eratosthenes(276B.C.-196B.C.), Nicomachus(C.100)
and Diophantus(C.250). The study of number theory started with the set of
natural numbers, denoted by N = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, . . .}. Two basic operations ad-
dition and multiplication are defined on N. But in general, the subtraction is
not defined. The reason behind this is that the people will not be able to take
Rs 5 from a person with Rs 4. Thus for u, v ∈ N, u − v is not always defined.
Here comes the notion of negative natural numbers that is −1, −2, −3, . . . so
on. Therefore the set {1, 2, 3, 4, . . . , −1, −2, −3, −4, . . .} is an enlargement of N.
But here 0 is missing. The concept of zero originated in ancient India, ancient
Babylon and the Mayan civilisation. It is believed that it came into existence
from 458 A.D. Actually the concept of zero was developed at different times
in each of these civilisations. But it was first used in ancient India by Hindus
and thereby Arabics use it as a number. Thus by inclusion of zero and the
negative natural numbers create a new set known as set of integers, denoted by
Z = {−1, −2, −3, −4, . . . ., 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, . . .}. Here the basic operations addition,

1
2 Number Theory and its Applications
subtraction and multiplication is possible. But division, the inverse operation
of multiplication is not defined on Z. In other words, if u, v are elements of Z
then uv is not always an element of Z. The set of integers plays an important
role in the study of number theory. Next we proceed with our discussion by two
important properties of natural numbers or sets of positive integers. The first
begins with a well ordering principle.
The Well-Ordering Property: Every nonempty subset A of natural numbers
has a least element. In other words, if A is a non-empty subset of N then ∃ m ∈ A
such that m ≤ a, ∀a ∈ A. In particular, N itself has the least element 1.
We now prove these two principles by taking help of each other. First we will
prove the well-ordering principle using the principle of mathematical induction.
(I)Deduction of mathematical induction by well ordering principle.

Proof. Let A be the subset of natural numbers where 1 ∈ A and if k ∈ A then

k + 1 ∈ A. Its suffices to show that A = N. To fulfill this, let B be the set
of those natural numbers which does not belong to A. Then A ∪ B = N and
A ∩ B = φ. To get the desired result we need to show that B = φ. If possible,
let B = φ. Then by well ordering principle there exists a least element m of B
such that m ≤ n, ∀ n ∈ B. Note that 1 = m as 1 ∈ A and hence 1 ∈ / B. Since
m is the least element of B, therefore m − 1 ∈ / B and this gives m − 1 ∈ A.
By hypothesis, we have (m − 1) + 1 ∈ A i.e. m ∈ A. This contradicts the fact
that A ∩ B = φ. So our assumption that B = φ is wrong. This proves that
A = N.

(II) Deduction of well-ordering principle by mathematical induction.

Proof. To the contrary, let A be the non empty subset of N having no least
element. Let us construct a set B of natural numbers in such a way that any
number x ∈ B is less than every member of A. Thus B = {x|x ∈ N & x < a}
for every a ∈ A. Then every member of A is either greater than or equal to each
member of B. Therefore A ∩ B = φ. Note that 1 ∈ / A, otherwise 1 will become
the least element of A. But by hypothesis A has no least element. Therefore
1 ∈ B and 1 < a for every a ∈ A.
Assume that t ∈ B. Then t < a for every a ∈ A. We assert t + 1 ∈ / B. If so,
then t + 1 be the next natural number larger than t. Then t + 1 will be the least
element of A but A does not have any least element. Hence t + 1 ∈ B. Hence by
principle of mathematical induction B ⊆ N. But A ∩ B = φ. Then N ∩ A = φ
yields A = φ, a contradiction. Therefore A must have a least element. This
completes the proof.
Prerequisites 3

The above discussion leads to the following theorems related to mathematical

induction.
Theorem 1.0.1. Principle of induction: Let S be a subset of N such that
(i) 1 ∈ S,

(ii) if k ∈ S, then k + 1 ∈ S. Then S = N.

Theorem 1.0.2. Let P (n) be u statement with n ∈ N satisfying
(i) P (1) is true,

(ii) P (k + 1) is true, whenever P (k) is true; then P (n) holds for all n.
Example 1.0.1. Prove that for each n ≥ 2, (n + 1)! > 2n . The inequality holds
for n = 2 since (2 + 1)! > 22 .
Solution 1.0.1. Let the inequality hold for some natural number k ≥ 2. Then
(k + 1)! > 2k . We are to prove that the inequality prevails for k + 1 ı.e. {(k +
1) + 1}! > 2k+1 . Now

{(k + 1) + 1}! = (k + 2)! = (k + 2)(k + 1)!

> 2 · 2k [∵ k + 2 > 2]
= 2k+1 .

Hence the inequality prevails for k + 1. Therefore by principle of induction, the

inequality holds for all natural numbers ≥ 2.
Remark 1.0.1. It is to be noted that the inequality fails to hold for n = 1.
Example 1.0.2. Prove that for every n ≥ 1,
1 1 1 1 n
+ + + ··· + = .
1·2 2·3 3·4 n(n + 1) n+1
1
Solution 1.0.2. Let P (n) : 1·2 1
+ 2·3 1
+ 3·4 + · · · + n(n+1)
1 n
= n+1 be the statement
for n ≥ 1. Note that P (1) is true(Verify!). Let k be the positive integer such
that P (k) holds. We are to show P (k + 1) holds. Now
1 1 1 1 1
+ + + ··· + +
1·2 2·3 3·4 k(k + 1) (k + 1)(k + 2)
k 1
= + , ∵ P (k) holds
k + 1 (k + 1)(k + 2)
1 (k + 1)2
= ·
k+1 k+2
k+1
= .
(k + 1) + 1
Hence P (k + 1) holds. Hence the result follows.
4 Number Theory and its Applications
Example 1.0.3. Prove that 2m + 1 < 2 m
for all integers m ≥ 3.

Solution 1.0.3. Let P (m) : 2m + 1 < 2m be the statement, for all integers
m ≥ 3. Here for m = 3, we have 2 · 3 + 1 = 7 < 8 = 23 . Thus the statement is
true for m = 3. Hence P (3) holds. Suppose k(≥ 3) is an integer for which the
statement P (k) is true. To prove the validity of the argument of this statement
we need to show P (m) is true for m = k + 1. Now

2(k + 1) + 1 = 2k + 1 + 2
< 2k + 2[Since P (m) is true for m = k]
< 2k + 2k [since k ≥ 3]
< 2k+1 .

Thus the statement P (m) is true for m = k + 1. So by applying the principle of

mathematical induction, we can say that P (m) is true for all m ≥ 3.

Example 1.0.4. Prove that n2 < 2n for every integers n ≥ 5.

Solution 1.0.4. Let P (n) : n2 < 2n be the given statement for all integers
n ≥ 5. Here P (5) is true(verify!). Suppose k is a positive integer such that
k ≤ 5 and P (k) is true. We are to show P (k + 1) is true. Now

(k + 1)2 = k 2 + 2k + 1 < 2k + 2k + 1(by induction hypothesis)

< 2k + 2k (see Example 1.0.3)
< 2 · 2k = 2k+1 .

So P (k + 1) holds. Hence this finishes the result.

As we know counting is an important aspects of number system. There is a

deep and significant relation between counting techniques and number theory.
We now continue our discussion with a significant property of counting tech-
niques, Pigeonhole principle, of the set of integers Z. It plays a key role in the
study of numbers. The statement of this principle as follows.

Theorem 1.0.3. Pigeonhole principle: The simplest form of the principle is

that, if k + 1 or more objects are to be placed in k boxes then there is at least
one box containing two or more of the objects.

Proof. In anticipation of a contradiction, suppose that none of the k boxes has

more than one object. Then the total number of objects will be k. This would
lead to the contradiction as there are k + 1 or more objects.
Prerequisites 5

In fact the first formalisation of the notion of Pigeonhole principle is believed

to be given by Dirichlet(1805 − 1859). He called it as drawer principle. But the
term “Pigeonhole principle ”was first coined by the mathematician Raphael M.
Robinson in 1940. The next example illustrates this concept lucidly.

Example 1.0.5. If there is a group of 368 people in a club, then there must be
at least three people with the same birthday. The reason behind this is that the
number of possibilities of birthdays in a year is 366.

One can think that this principle is very much obvious. But this in fact would
become an useful tool once we generalize it. The statement of this generalization
is as follows:
If n objects are placed in k boxes, then there is at least one box containing
   
at least nk number of objects, where nk is the greatest integer not exceeding
n
k.
Another important aspect of counting techniques which can be used fre-
quently in the study of number theory is binomial theorem and it can be stated
as follows.

Theorem 1.0.4. For any two real numbers a, b and any positive integer n,
n  
 n
(a + b)n = an bn−r .
r=0
r

One of the nice diagrammatic representation of binomial coefficients is Pas-

cal’s triangle, named after French mathematician Blaise Pascal. This looks like

n=0 1
n=1 1 1
n=2 1 2 1
n=3 1 3 3 1
n=4 1 4 6 4 1
n=5 1 5 10 10 5 1
n=6 1 6 15 20 15 6 1

It shows that when two adjacent binomial coefficients in the triangle are added,
the binomial coefficient in the next row between these two coefficients are pro-
duced.
All the above discussions are based on integers but in our next discussion we
have highlighted those numbers which are of the form uv where u, v ∈ Z. Here v
must be nonzero, otherwise the division will not be possible. From the division
of integers, there comes the concept of decimal numbers. For example 45 = 0.8.
6 Number Theory and its Applications
2
Here we see that = 0.5 ı.e. we can cancel common multiple from both numer-
4
ator and denominator till their greatest common divisor will be 1.This extension
of set of integers leads to the notion of rational numbers, denoted by Q. Thus
any number of the form uv where u, v ∈ Z with v = 0 and gcd(u, v) = 1, is called
rational number. Actually the symbol Q comes from the German word ‘quo-
tient ’which can be translated as ‘ratio ’, appeared in Bourbaki’s Algebra(1998).
Classical greek and Indian mathematicians studied theory of national numbers,
as part of the general study of number theory. The concept of rational numbers
were from the ancient times. Those can be expressed as a ratio of two different
numbers that had no common divisors except 1. This prevalent concept which
was there over a period of time was found to be inadequate, when in 500B.C.
the Italian philosopher Hippasus proved the existence of irrational numbers. He
was also a member of group of people who were called the Pythagorean math-
ematicians. His method of finding irrational numbers involve the technique of
√
contradiction. There he had assumed that 2 is an irrational number. Then
he moved on to show that no such rational number could exist. Therefore it
should be something different. However, Pythagorus believed in the absolute-
ness of number and could not accept the existence of irrational numbers. So he
sentenced Hippasus to death by drowning. In 16th century, finally Europeans
accepted the existence of negative integers and fractional numbers. Thereby in
17th century, many mathematicians used decimal fractions with modern nota-
tions. Subsequently from 19th century onwards, the irrationals were seperated
into algebraic and transcendental part. It had remained almost dormant since
Euclid. Actually irrationals are closely associated to continued fractions, which
had received attention at the hands of Euler.
Finally we end our discussions with the two fundamental theorems.

Theorem 1.0.5. There  any r ∈ Q satisfying r2 = 2.

Proof. If possible, let ∃ r ∈ Q such that r2 = 2. Since r ∈ Q, therefore it is

of the form xy with gcd(x, y) = 1 and y = 0. Hence x2 = 2y 2 . This proves
x2 is even and consequently x is also so. Suppose x = 2k. Then 4k 2 = 2y 2 or
 1,
y 2 = 2k 2 . Hence y 2 is an even integer and so y is even. This shows gcd(x, y) =
which ends up with contradiction. Thus for any rational quantity r, the equation
√
x2 = 2 has no solutions. Furthermore, this theorem leads us to the fact that 2
is irrational.

Finally our next theorem indicates on the existence of irrational numbers.

Theorem 1.0.6. Let k be a non-square positive integer. Then  any r ∈ Q such

that r2 = k.
Prerequisites 7
Proof. To the contrary, assume that ∃ a rational number r satisfying r = k. 2

Then r can be written as ab where gcd(a, b) = 1. Then a2 = kb2 holds. For this
positive integer k, there exists a positive integer l such that

l2 < k < (l + 1)2

⇒ b2 l2 < a2 < (l + 1)2 b2
⇒ bl < a < (l + 1)b
⇒ 0 < a − bl < b. (1.0.1)

Further,

(kb − al)2 = k 2 b2 − 2kbal + (al)2 = k[a2 − 2abl + (bl)2 ] = k(a − bl)2

 2
(kb − al)2 a ka − al
So k = . Since a and b are prime to each other and ,
(a − bl)2 b a − bl
are two representation of k, therefore we have a − bl > b and this contradicts
(1.0.1). So this completes the proof.

Finally we are at the edge of culminating our discussions related to propaga-

tion of numbers. In the concluding part, we conduct the study of real numbers
which is the union of rationals and irrationals. The set of real numbers is de-
noted by R. The creditability of uncovering R would not goes to a single person.
The development took 2000 years and many renowned mathematicians had con-
tributed with their important thoughts on R. The notion of R had started its
development from ancient Greece. Euclid had developed a theory of proportions
which is equivalent to modern theory of real numbers. In 17th century, John
Napier and Simon Stevin introduced the concept of infinite decimal expansion.
Cantor and Dedekind had given their contributions to originate the modern
theories of R. In the following sections we are going to discuss few important
properties of R.

Order Properties of R
The linear relation ‘<’ on R defined by “x < y if x, y ∈ R i.e. x is less than y”.
For the reals x, y, z, it satisfies the following properties:

1. Law of Trichotomy: x < y or y < x or x = y holds.

2. If x < y and y < z, then x < z.

3. If x < y, then x + z < y + z .

4. If x < y and z > 0, then xz < yz.

8 Number Theory and its Applications

The set R together with the ordered relation defined on it is said to be ordered
set. For any x ∈ R, the concept of absolute property of R is defined as

|x| = x, if x > 0
= 0, if x = 0
= −x. if x < 0.

Completeness Properties of R
Next we are going to discuss the completeness property of R. The discussion
starts with the following definition.

Definition 1.0.1. Let K ⊂ R. Then a real number u is said to be an upper

bound(lower bound) of K if x ∈ K and x ≤ u(x ≥ u). If K has an upper
bound(lower bound), then it is called bounded above(bounded below).

Example 1.0.6. Let K = {x ∈ R : 3 < x < 4}. Note that K is bounded above
and 4 is the upper bound. Also K is bounded below and 3 is the lower bound.

The last example raises the question, whether the upper bound 4 and the
lower bound 3 is greatest or least respectively. The following definition of least
upper bound and greatest lower bound will be the answer to the raised question.

Definition 1.0.2. Let K ⊂ R. If K is bounded above(bounded below), then an

upper bound (lower bound) is said to be the least upper bound(greatest lower
bound) or supremum(infimum) if it is less(greater) than every upper(lower)
bounds of K.

Actually it is a deeper property of R that for any non-empty bounded

above(below) subset of K of R, the least upper bound(greatest lower bound)
do exists. This property of R is called the supremum(infimum) property. Note
that we can establish these two properties are equivalent and one implies other.
Furthermore, the supremum property of R can be treated as an axiom, known
to be the completeness property of R. The statement is as follows:

Statement 1.0.1. Axiom of least upper bound: If a set K is bounded above,

then it has a least upper bound i.e. there exists a unique real number M satisfying

1. x ≤ M, ∀ x ∈ K.

2. for arbitrary (> 0), there exists an element α ∈ K such that M −  < α ≤
M.
Prerequisites 9
It is not necessary that every subset of R should have an upper bound. For
instance it can be examined that N is not bounded above and thus it has no
upper bound. Now taking help of the axiom of least upper bound, we are going
to show the existence of greatest lower bound for a non–empty bounded below
subset of R.

Theorem 1.0.7. A non-empty subset K of R which is bounded below, has the

greatest lower bound i.e.there exists a unique real number m such that

1. x ≥ m, ∀ x ∈ K.

2. For arbitrary (> 0), there exists an element β ∈ K such that m ≤ β <
m + .

Proof. Note that K is a non empty set, which is bounded below. Then ∃ k ∈ R
such that x ≥ k, ∀ x ∈ K. Consider K  = {−x : x ∈ K}. Let y ∈ K  . Then
−y ∈ K and −y ≥ K together implies y ≤ −k. This is true for all y ∈ K  . This
shows K  is bounded above. Then from least upper bound axiom, we obtain
M = sup K  . We need to show −M = inf K. Let t ∈ K. Then −t ∈ K  implies
−t ≤ M . Thus we have t ≥ −M . Let (> 0) be chosen arbitrarily. Then α ∈ K 
such that
M −  < α ≤ M ⇒ −M ≤ −α < −M + .

Since α ∈ K  , then −α = β ∈ K and thus taking −M = m we have,

1. x ≥ m, ∀ x ∈ K.

2. for arbitrary (> 0), there exists an element β ∈ K such that m ≤ β <
m + .

Our next phase of discussion deals with the concept of functions between
two arbitrary sets. The notion of function has an paramount importance not
only in number theory. It helps to correlate between various algebraic struc-
tures. It is actually a rule of correspondence between the elements of two sets.
The idea of function was developed in the seventeenth century. During this
period mathematician Rene Descartes(1596 − 1650) used it to describe many
mathematical relationship in his book Geometry. The term function was
introduced by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibnitz(1646 − 1716), almost fifty years af-
ter the publication of Geometry. The idea was further formalized by Leonhard
Euler(1707−1783). However the present day conception of function is attributed
to Dirichlet(1805 − 1859), who in 1837 proposed the definition of a function as
10 Number Theory and its Applications

a rule of correspondence that assigns a unique value of an independent variable.

Now a function from a set X to an another set Y can be defined as follows:

Definition 1.0.3. For two non-empty sets X and Y , a relation f from X into
Y is called a function from X into Y if

1. domain of f is set X

2. f is well-defined in the sense that for x1 , x2 ∈ X with x1 = x2 ⇒ f (x1 ) =

f (x2 ).

Actually f is a subset of X × Y , where X is referred as domain of f , denoted

by Dom(f ), and the set Y is said to be co-domain of f . Here the set f (X) =
{f (x) : x ∈ X} is a subset of Y . This f (X) is called range of f , denoted by Imf .
For instance, consider X = Y = R. Then f (x) = 2x, ∀ x ∈ R is a function from
R to R which is also called real valued function.
Moreover, there are few types of functions such as f (x) = x ∀ x ∈ X from
X to X, called identity function and f (x) = c for some constant c is known as
constant function.
Two functions f, g : X → Y are said to be equal if f (x) = g(x) ∀ x ∈ X.
Sometimes functions can produce same values for different elements of domain
set such as if we consider f : R → R defined by f (x) = |x|, then we can see that
f (3) = f (−3) but 3 = −3. From this, we have the following definition.

Definition 1.0.4. A function f : X → Y is said to be injective when for every

x1 , x2 ∈ X if
x1 = x2 ⇒ f (x1 ) =
 f (x2 ).
Moreover, if for every y ∈ Y there exists at least one x ∈ x such that f (x) = y
holds then f is said to be surjective. Intuitively, a surjective map covers the
whole of the codomain set i.e. Im(f ) is the codomain of f . f is called bijective
if it is both injective and surjective.

Suppose A = {1, 2, 3} and B = {p, q, r, s, t} and f : A → B be defined by

f (1) = p, f (2) = r, f (3) = s.

Since p, q, r have only one preimage and s, t have no preimage, therefore f is

injective. On the other hand, suppose A = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5} and B = {p, q, r}. Let
f : A → B and g : A → B be respectively defined by

f (1) = q, f (2) = p, f (3) = q, f (4) = r, f (5) = p;

g(1) = r, g(2) = p, g(3) = p, g(4) = r, g(5) = r.
Prerequisites 11

It is clear that f is surjective but g is not. Also, here f fails to be injective.

Next let us consider the function f : R → R defined by f (x) = 5x + 2. Here f
is an example of a bijective function.
Now consider a function f : R → R defined by f (x) = sin x2 . Then we
see that the function f is the amalgam of two functions f : R → R, where
f (x) = sin x and g(x) = x2 . This originates the notion of composition of two
functions.

Definition 1.0.5. Consider two functions f : X → Y and g : Y → Z. Then

the composition of f and g, denoted as g ◦ f , is defined as (g ◦ f )(x) = g(f (x))
where g ◦ f : X → Z.

Finally, we end this session of discussion by the concept of inverse of a func-

tion.

Definition 1.0.6. Let f : X → Y be a bijective function. Then the function

f −1 : Y → X is said to be inverse of f . The domain of the inverse function f −1
is the range of f and the range of f −1 is the domain of f .

The concluding part of the chapter deals with the study of a special type
of real-valued function whose domain set is, in particular, a set of naturals
i.e.f : N → R, denoted by f (n) = xn where n ∈ N and xn ∈ R. In other
words, it can be interpreted as 1 → x1 , 2 → x2 , . . . and so on. Therefore, the
representation xn prevails. The set {xn : n ∈ N} is a subset of R which is said to
be the range of the sequence. For example, let us consider a function f : N → R
defined as f (n) = n+1 n
, ∀ n ∈ N. Here the sequence is { n+1 n
}n , also denoted
as { 2 , 3 , 4 , . . .}. The range set of this sequence is { n+1 : n ∈ N}. Now we are
1 2 3 n

going to discuss the boundedness of sequence, whose definition is as follows:

Definition 1.0.7. A sequence is said to be bounded above or bounded below

according as the range set of the sequence is bounded above or below. It follows
that the sequence {xn } is bounded above(below) if there exists a real quantity
G(g) such that xn ≤ G(xn ≥ g) ∀ n ∈ N and G(g) is called the upper(lower)
bound of the sequence. A sequence is said to be bounded if it is both bounded
above and bounded below.
n 1
From the last example, we can see that xn = =1− ≤ 1. Thus
n+1 n+1
{xn } is bounded above and 1 is the upper bound. Consider { n1 } for all n ∈ N,
where the values of the range set goes to zero if n → ∞. In other words, for all
large values of n, the values of the range set cluster near zero. This generates
the concept of convergence of a sequence.
12 Number Theory and its Applications
Definition 1.0.8. A real number l is defined as the limit of a sequence {xn } if
for any arbitrary (> 0), ∃ m ∈ N such that

|xn − l| < , ∀ n ≥ m.

In this case, the sequence is said to be convergent and can be written as limn→∞ xn =
l.

The question arises: Is the limit l of the convergent sequence is unique?

We are fortunate enough to have the following theorem as the answer to the
question.

Theorem 1.0.8. Limit of a convergent sequence is unique.

Proof. Let the sequence {xn } converges to l and l . Then for a pre-assigned
(> 0), ∃ m1 , m2 ∈ N such that

|xn − l| < , ∀ n ≥ m1 ,
2
and

|xn − l | < , ∀ n ≥ m2 .
2
Let m = max{m1 , m2 }. Then,

|l − l | = |(xn − l) − (xn − l)|

≤ |(xn − l ) − (xn − l)|
 
< + = , ∀ n > m.
2 2
Since (> 0) is arbitrary, therefore the uniqueness follows.

The discussion of the following theorem is based on the connection between

convergence and boundedness.

Theorem 1.0.9. A convergent sequence is bounded.

Proof. Let the sequence {xn } converges to l. Then for a pre-assigned (> 0), ∃ m
such that

|xn − l| < , ∀ n ≥ m, i.e. l −  < xn < l + , ∀ n ≥ m.

If A and B be the greatest and least of the finite set {x1 , x2 , . . . , xn , . . . , l−, l+},
then B ≤ xn ≤ A ∀ n. Hence the sequence {xn } is bounded.

Note that the converse of the above theorem is not true in general. For
instance, consider the sequence {(−1)n } which is bounded but not convergent.
So, if a sequence does not converge then two possibilities may arise. Either the
sequence diverge or oscillates.
Prerequisites 13
Definition 1.0.9. A sequence {xn } is said to be divergent and diverges to +∞,
if for an arbitrary positive real number N , however large it is, ∃ m ∈ N such
that
xn > N, ∀ n ≥ m.
Also, the sequence {xn } is said to be divergent and diverges to −∞, if for an
arbitrary positive real number N , however large it is, ∃ m ∈ N such that

xn < −N, ∀ n ≥ m.

Finally, a sequence which is neither convergent nor divergent is said to be os-

cillatory sequence. For example, the sequence {2n } diverges to +∞ and the
sequence {−n2 } diverges to −∞. The sequence {(−1)n } is an oscillatory one.
Finally, we close this discussion with monotone sequence and few properties
related to it.
Definition 1.0.10. A sequence {xn } is said to be monotone increasing(decreasing)
sequence if xn+1 ≥ (≤)n, ∀ n ∈ N.
As an example, let us consider the sequence n2 i.e.{1, 4, 9, . . .}. This sequence
is monotone increasing, however the sequence { 21n } i.e.{ 12 , 14 , 18 , . . .} is monotone
decreasing.
Theorem 1.0.10. A monotone increasing sequence, if bounded above, is con-
vergent and converges to least upper bound.
Proof. Let {xn } be the monotone increasing sequence, bounded above. Then
for a pre-assigned (> 0), ∃ r ∈ N such that

M −  < xr ≤ M < M + .

Here M is the least upper bound of {xn }. Therefore, M −  < xr ≤ M + .

Again, since {xn } is monotone increasing then for n ≥ r we find xn ≥ xr . Thus,
M −  < xr < xn ≤ M < M +  ⇒ |xn − M | <  ∀ n ≥ r. This completes the
proof.

Remark 1.0.2. A monotone increasing sequence, if unbounded above, is diver-

gent and diverges to +∞.
Analogously, we can state that
Theorem 1.0.11. A monotone decreasing sequence, if bounded below, is con-
vergent and converges to greatest lower bound.
Remark 1.0.3. A monotone decreasing sequence, if unbounded below, is diver-
gent and diverges to −∞.
14 Number Theory and its Applications

Exercises:
 n(n+1) 2
1. Using Mathematical induction show that 13 + 23 + · · · + n3 = 2 ,
for all positive integers n.

2. Using induction on n prove the identity n2 < n! for all integers n ≥ 4.

3. What is the coefficient of x7 in (3x + 2)19 ?

4. Find the coefficient of x5 y 7 in (x + y)10 .

5. Suppose S is a set of n + 1 integers. Prove that there exist distinct a, b ∈ S

such that a − b is a multiple of n.

6. Show that in any group of n people, there are two who have an identical
number of friends within the group.

7. Determine whether the function f : Z → Q defined by f (x) = 2x , for all

x ∈ R is bijective or not.

8. Let f, g : R → R be two functions, given by f (x) = |x| + x for all x ∈ R

and g(x) = |x| − x for all x ∈ R. Evaluate f ◦ g and g ◦ f .
√ √
9. A sequence {xn } is defined by xn = 5 and xn+1 = 5xn for n ≥ 1. Prove
that lim xn = 5.

10. Show the convergence of the sequence {(1 + n1 )n }.

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