Coprime pythagorean quadruples or higher tuples?

  • Thread starter JesseM
  • Start date
In summary, it is possible to find pythagorean triples of the form a^2 + b^2 = c^2 such that a,b,c are all pairwise coprime (no two share a common factor larger than 1), but it is not possible to find higher tuples.
  • #1
JesseM
Science Advisor
8,520
16
Kind of a random question, but it came up in an online discussion I was having recently about a supposed proof that hinged on pythagorean triples and whether it could be generalized...I know it's possible to find pythagorean triples of the form a^2 + b^2 = c^2 such that a,b,c are all pairwise coprime (no two share a common factor larger than 1), for example 3^2 + 4^2 = 5^2. But is this possible with quadruples of the form a^2 + b^2 + c^2 = d^2, or quintuples of the form a^2 + b^2 + c^2 + d^2 = e^2, or any higher tuples? If so can anyone find some examples? I see this page has a method for generating higher tuples but I can't really follow it...

edit: according to this page the parametrization for generating all primitive pythagorean quadruples apparently implies that at least two of them must be divisible by 2, so in this case it won't work...but I'm still wondering about quintuples and higher...
 
Last edited:
Physics news on Phys.org
  • #2
It occurred to me that a simple example of a Pythagorean quintuple that's pairwise coprime would just be 1^2 + 1^2 + 1^2 + 1^2 = 2^2. But I wonder if there are any examples where all the numbers are larger than 1.
 
  • #3
Didn't get any response to this one, but so no one wastes their time in the future, just wanted to say that I did find a pairwise coprime pythagorean quintuplet with all numbers greater than 1:

5^2 + 7^2 + 31^2 + 101^2 = 106^2
 
  • #4
This is a little off the subject, but I think there is only one case where consecutive squares starting with 1 is a square:

[tex]1^2+2^2 +3^2++++n^2 = \frac{(n)(n+1)(2n+1)}{6} = X^2 [/tex]

And that case is n=24. Obviously they are not all pairwise coprime.
 
  • #5
robert Ihnot said:
This is a little off the subject, but I think there is only one case where consecutive squares starting with 1 is a square:

[tex]1^2+2^2 +3^2++++n^2 = \frac{(n)(n+1)(2n+1)}{6} = X^2 [/tex]

And that case is n=24. Obviously they are not all pairwise coprime.
But it easily would be on topic to add up all the composite squares 16 + 36 + 81 + ... + 576. If that sum is not a coprime square, test if an even number of the prime squares, or if 4 and an even number of odd prime squares, could be added to this sum to make a square and be coprime with the remaining prime squares.
 
Last edited:

FAQ: Coprime pythagorean quadruples or higher tuples?

What is a Coprime Pythagorean Quadruple?

A coprime Pythagorean quadruple is a set of four positive integers, a, b, c, and d, that satisfy the Pythagorean theorem (a² + b² = c²) and are all relatively prime (meaning they have no common factors other than 1).

How many Coprime Pythagorean Quadruples are there?

The number of coprime Pythagorean quadruples is infinite. This was proven by the mathematician Joseph Louis Lagrange in the 18th century.

Can there be higher tuples that satisfy the Pythagorean theorem?

Yes, there can be higher tuples that satisfy the Pythagorean theorem, such as coprime Pythagorean quintuples (sets of five numbers) or higher. However, the existence of such tuples is still an open problem in mathematics and has not been proven yet.

How are Coprime Pythagorean Quadruples useful in mathematics?

Coprime Pythagorean quadruples are useful in number theory and have applications in cryptography and coding theory. They also provide interesting patterns and relationships between numbers.

Are there any well-known examples of Coprime Pythagorean Quadruples?

Yes, one well-known example is the set (3,4,5,6), which satisfies the Pythagorean theorem (3² + 4² = 5²) and all numbers are relatively prime. Other examples include (5,12,13,14) and (8,15,17,19).

Similar threads

Back
Top