Lucas sequences whose 12th or 9th term is a square

dc.creatorBremner, Andrew
dc.creatorTzanakis, Nikos
dc.date2004-05-15
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T05:08:18Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T05:08:18Z
dc.descriptionLet P and Q be non-zero relatively prime integers. The Lucas sequence {U_n(P,Q) is defined by U_0=0, U_1=1, U_n = P U_{n-1}-Q U_{n-2} for n>1. The sequence {U_n(1,-1)} is the familiar Fibonacci sequence, and it was proved by Cohn that the only perfect square greater than 1 in this sequence is $U_{12}=144$. The question arises, for which parameters P, Q, can U_n(P,Q) be a perfect square? In this paper, we complete recent results of Ribenboim and MacDaniel. Under the only restriction GCD(P,Q)=1 we determine all Lucas sequences {U_n(P,Q)} with U_{12}= square. It turns out that the Fibonacci sequence provides the only example. Moreover, we also determine all Lucas sequences {U_n(P,Q) with U_9= square.
dc.description13 pages
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/math/0405306
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/math/0405306
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/71210
dc.subjectNumber Theory
dc.subject11B39; 11G07; 11G05; 11Y50
dc.titleLucas sequences whose 12th or 9th term is a square
dc.typetext

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