Exercise · ZW-PELL-S-EQUATION-002 · ★☆☆ Basic

State which of these values of \(d\) is valid for Pell's equation.

Choose one option.

Show answer
  • D. \(d=10\)

Explanation

The valid value is the one that is positive and not a perfect square. The squares 9 and 16 are ruled out, and zero is not positive.

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Review the concept: Pell's equation

Pell's equation is the quadratic Diophantine equation in integers \(x\), \(y\) that sets equal to 1 the difference between \(x^2\) and \(d\) times \(y^2\), where \(d\) is a positive integer that is not a perfect square.

\[x^2 - d y^2 = 1\]

More practice problems: pell's equation

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