Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2009/iii/paper-26/2/d/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2009 iii Paper 26 2 d Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-10-03 Updated 2026-10-14
Let , the infinite-order point established in part (c). Every positive multiple is rational and is neither nor 2-torsion: either possibility would force some nonzero multiple of to vanish. Write its coordinates as , so and .
The stated algebraic identity gives positive rational sidesThey satisfy , and their area isby the curve equation. This is the infinitely many rational right triangles from a nontorsion point construction for the congruent number elliptic curve.
The infinitely many points cannot produce only finitely many triangles. For a fixed ratio , the positive number satisfies , so there are at most two choices for , then at most two signs of and two signs of . Thus the map to ordered triangles is finite-to-one. Permuting the two legs introduces only another finite ambiguity. Consequently there are infinitely many distinct rational right triangles of area five. For itself the sides are .
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