Luc TARTAR to John MACKEY, October 1, 2009

Here is a different presentation for showing that if A and B are positive integers with A2 + B 2 =
n (A B + 1), then n must be a square.
Because n = 1 is a square, and there are no solutions for n = 2, since the equation is (x − y)2 = 2 in
that case, one may assume that n ≥ 3, so that x2 + y 2 = n (1 + x y) is an hyperbola.
The hyperbola has two branches, one below the diagonal y = x and one above it, since x2 +y 2 = n (1+x y)
−n
together with y = x give x2 = n−2 < 0. One chooses the branch y > x, and one moves along this branch
   
0 1 −1 n −1
using the matrix M = , or its inverse M = , and this is just the observation that
−1 n 1 0
2 2 2 2
y + (n y − x) − n y (n y − x) = x + y − n x y for all x, y ∈ R, so that any hyperbola of equation
x2 + y 2 = C + n x y is mapped
√ into itself by the action of M (or M −1 ). √ √
The point P = (0, n) is on the hyperbola x2 + y 2 = n (1 + x y), and M maps it to M P = ( n, n n),
but if n is not a square neither P nor M P have integers coordinates, so that starting from an eventual
integer point (A, B) and applying M −1 sufficiently many times one finds an integer point falling strictly
between P and M P on the hyperbola (and transforming this obvious remark into an analytic proof could
be messy, but there is a simple parameterization √ of √the branch of√hyperbola, shown below), so there would
exist an integer solution (a, b) with 0 < a < √ n, n < b < n n, and a2 + b2 = n (1 + a b). Since the
n x+ n2 x2 +4(n−x2 )
equation of the branch of hyperbola is y = 2 , one would have n2 a2 + 4(n − a2 ) = m2 for
an integer m (which is 2b − n a), so that m > n a since n > a2 , and one has an impossibility if one shows
that m < n a + 1, which means 4(n − a2 ) < 2n a + 1: this condition is true if a ≥ 2, and the case a = 1 gives
b2 + 1 = n (b + 1), but the only case where b + 1 divides b2 + 1 is b = 1 (since b2 − 1 is a multiple of b + 1, 2
must be a multiple of b + 1), and it occurs for n = 1.
There is a simple
√
way to parameterize the branch of hyperbola: the equation is (y − λ− x) (y − λ+ x) = n,
2
where λ± = n± 2n −4 are the roots of λ2 − n λ + 1 = 0, satisfying λ− + λ+ = n and λ− λ+ = 1. The
upper branch of the √ hyperbola has y − λ− x > 0 and √ y − λ+ x > 0, and one parameterizes by ξ ∈ R such
that y − λ− x = n λξ+ , which implies y − λ+ x = n λξ− since λ− λ+ = 1. The point P corresponds
to ξ = 0, the point M P to ξ = 1, and more generally if a point (x, y) has parameter ξ its image by
M , which is (y, n y − x), has parameter ξ + 1: indeed, using λ− + λ+ = n and λ− λ+ = 1, one has
(n y − x) − λ− y = λ+ y − x = λ+ (y − λ− x), and (n y − x) − λ+ y = λ− y − x = λ− (y − λ+ x).
How did I discover the formula for the parameterization?
I wanted to apply M ξ to P , and since M is diagonalizable with eigenvalues λ− and λ+ , there exist two
matrices M− and M+ such that f (M ) = f (λ− ) M− + f (λ+ ) M+ for all polynomials f , and the definition
of g(M ) for g continuous is then g(λ− ) M− + g(λ+ ) M+ (so that if g is a uniform limit of a sequence of
polynomials fk in a neighborhood of the eigenvalues, fk (M ) converges to g(M )). One finds M− and M+ by
using the polynomials 1 and X, so that I = M− + M+ , and M = λ− M− + λ+ M+ , and solving the linear
−λ+ I M −λ− I
system gives M− = M ξ ξ
λ− −λ+ and M+ = λ+ −λ− and then M = λ− M− + λ+ M+ .
ξ
√ √
Using λ+ − λ− = n2 − 4, one finds that n2 − 4 M ξ P = λξ− (λ+ P − M P ) + λξ+ (M P − λ− P ), so
√ √ √ √ √
that if M ξ P has coordinates (x, y) one has n2 − 4 x = λξ− (− n) + λξ+ ( n) and n2 − 4 y = λξ− (λ+ n −
√ √ √ √ √ √ √
n n) + λξ+ (n n − λ− n) = λξ− (−λ− n) + λξ+ (λ+ n); then, n2 − 4 (y − λ− x) = λξ+ n (λ+ − λ− ) =
√ √ √
n2 − 4 n λξ+ , and similarly y − λ+ x = n λξ− .