IMO 1963 · Problem 1

Find all real roots of the equation \[ \sqrt{x^2-p}+2\sqrt{x^2-1}=x, \] where \(p\) is a real parameter.

Official text of the problem. Official problem paper (PDF)

Answer

For \(0\le p\le \frac43\), there is exactly one real root: \[ \boxed{x=\frac{4-p}{\sqrt{16-8p}}}. \] For all other real values of \(p\), there are no real roots.

Solution

Suppose \(x\) is a real solution. The left-hand side is nonnegative, so \(x\ge0\); since \(x^2-1\ge0\), we have \(x\ge1\).

Put \(t=\sqrt{x^2-1}\). Then \(t\ge0\), \(x^2-t^2=1\), and the equation gives \[ \sqrt{x^2-p}=x-2t\ge0. \] Thus \(x\ge2t\). Squaring this equality yields \[ p=4t(x-t)=\frac{4t}{x+t}, \] where we used \((x-t)(x+t)=1\). Consequently, \[ 0\le p=\frac{4t}{x+t}\le\frac43, \] because \(x+t\ge3t\).

Rearranging \(p(x+t)=4t\), we obtain \[ px=(4-p)t. \] Squaring and substituting \(t^2=x^2-1\) gives \[ p^2x^2=(4-p)^2(x^2-1), \] hence \[ (16-8p)x^2=(4-p)^2. \] Since \(0\le p\le\frac43\) and \(x>0\), the only possible root is \[ x=\frac{4-p}{\sqrt{16-8p}}. \]

Conversely, let \(0\le p\le\frac43\), set \(D=\sqrt{16-8p}>0\), and take \(x=(4-p)/D\). Direct calculation gives \[ x^2-1=\frac{p^2}{D^2}, \qquad x^2-p=\frac{(4-3p)^2}{D^2}. \] Both radicands are nonnegative. Moreover, \(p\ge0\) and \(4-3p\ge0\), so \[ \sqrt{x^2-p}+2\sqrt{x^2-1} =\frac{4-3p}{D}+\frac{2p}{D} =\frac{4-p}{D} =x. \] This verifies the root throughout the stated interval, including both endpoints, and completes the classification.

The solution was checked against John Scholes' IMO solution archive (Kalva).