I'm trying to follow this answer to prove that √5n+2 is irrational. So far I understand that the whole proof relies on being able to prove that (5n+2)|x2⟹(5n+2)|x (which is why √4 doesn't fit, but √7 etc. does), this is where I got stuck. Maybe I'm overcomplicating it, so if you have a simpler approach, I'd like to know about it. :)
A related problem I'm trying to wrap my head around is: Prove that 5n+73n+4 is irreducible, i.e. (5n+7)∧(3n+4)=1.
Answer
Well, one way to say it is irrational is to see that 5n+2 isn't an integer square for any n∈Z (it only finish in 2 or 7). The other way you're trying lets you the same ending (p,q∈Z,q≠0):
√5n+2=pq5n+2=p2q2(1)q2(5n+2)=p2(2)
Let
p=pα11pα22…pαtt q=qβ11qβ22…qβss
where pi,qj are primes and αi,βj are positive integers.
From (1), p2/q2 is an integer (is equal to 5n+2), so you have that the qi are certain primes pj. Renaming the prime factors in a way such that qi=pi, you can let you the fraction (considering that t>s)
p2q2=p2α11p2α22…p2αttq2β11q2β22…q2βss=p2(α1−β1)1p2(α2−β2)2…p2(αs−βs)t…p2αtt=5n+2
then this implies that 5n+2 is a square, but by the original statement, it can't be.
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