Ask iit jee aieee pet cbse icse state board community Discussion Response Post to: P.T for any integer n>1, n! Is not a perfect square
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Hari Shankar (9109)

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 From Bertrand-Chebyshev  theorem, if k is a natural there exists at least one prime p such that k<p<2k-2

 

This prime will divide both (2k-1)! and 2k!.

 

Now we've got to see to what power it appears which is given by the Legendre function.

 

ord_p(n!) = \sum_{k=1}^{\infty} \left[\frac{n}{p^k} \right]

 

 

So if n = 2k or 2k-1 then

 

 1 \le \frac{n}{p}  < \frac{2k}{k} =2 

 

which means ord_p(n!) =1.

 

That means these primes appear to the power 1 in the prime factorisation of n!. But for a perfect square, every prime appears to an even power.

 

Hence n! cannot be of the form a^b with b>1 i.e it cannot be a perfect power of an integer. In particular it cannot be a perfect square.

 

 


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