Division Algorithm
and Greatest
Common Divisor
Agenda
• Definition of Divisibility and Algorithms
• The concept of divisibility and its properties
• Theorem of Division of Algorithms
• GCD and its Theorems
DIVISIBILITY
• One number can be divided by another number without
leaving a remainder. In simpler terms, it means a number can
be split evenly into a whole number of groups. For example,
10 is divisible by 5 because 10 divided by 5 equals 2, a whole
number, with no remainder.
Concept of Divisibility and Its
Properties
If a and b are integers such that a≠0, then we say "a divides b" if there exists an
integer k such that b=ka.
If a divides b, we also say "a is a factor of b" or "b is a multiple of a" and we write a∣b.
If a doesn’t divide b, we write a∤b.
For example 2∣4 and 7∣63, while 5∤26.
a. Note that any even integer has the form 2k for some integer k, while any odd integer
has the form 2k+1 for some integer k. Thus 2|n if n is even, while 2∤n if n is odd.
b. ∀a∈Z one has that a∣0.
c. If b∈Z is such that |b|<a, and b≠0, then a∤b.
Concept of Divisibility and Its
Properties
If a, b and c are integers such that a∣b and b∣c, then a∣c.
Since a∣b and b∣c, then there exist integers k1 and k2 such
that b=k1a and c=k2b. As a result, we have c=k1k2a and
hence a∣c.
Example: If 6∣18 and 18∣36, then 6∣36.
Defining the Division
Algorithm
The division algorithm is a core principle behind arithmetic
operations. It enables efficient partitioning and remainder
calculation. This algorithm is vital for understanding number
theory concepts.
Theorem of Division Algorithm
Theorem : If a and d are integers and d>0 then there exist unique
integers q and r satisfying the two conditions:
For example, 17 divided by 3 yields 17 = 3 * 5 + 2, where the
quotient (q) is 5 and the remainder (r) is 2. This structure ensures a
predictable result.
The Greatest Common
Divisor
If a and b are integers and d is a positive
integer such that d/a and d/b, then d is
called a common divisor of a and b. If both a
and b are zero then they have infinitely
many common divisors. However, if one of
them is nonzero, the number of common
divisors of a and b is finite.
We denote the largest common
divisor of a and b by gcd(a, b)
The Greatest Common
Divisor
From the definition, d is the greatest
common divisor of a and b if:
The Greatest Common
Divisor
Theorem:
If a and b are not both zero and d
=gcd(a, b), then d is the least element in the
set of all positive linear combinations of a
and b.
Corollary:
If d is the greatest common
divisor of a and b, then there exist
integers x and y such that d =ax+by
The Greatest Common
Divisor
Theorem:
Two integers a and b are coprime if
and only if there exist integers x and y such
that ax + by = 1.
1. Coprime Integers (a, b)
Two integers are coprime (or relatively prime) if
their greatest common divisor (GCD) is
1:gcd(a,b)=1
2. Linear Combination
An equation of the form: ax+by=d
(where x, y are integers) is called a linear
combination of a and b. Bézout's identity says that
the GCD of a and b is the smallest positive
integer that can be written this way.
The Greatest Common
Divisor
Theorem:
Two integers a and b are coprime if
and only if there exist integers x and y such
that ax + by = 1.
Theorem Explained
If a and b are coprime, then ax+by=1 has
integer solutions.
Since gcd(a,b)=1, by Bézout’s Identity, there
exist integers x and y such that:ax+by=1
If there exist integers x, y such that
ax+by=1, then a and b are coprime.
• Suppose d=gcd(a,b)>1.
Then d divides both a and b, so it would also divide
any linear combination, including ax+by.
The Greatest Common
Divisor
Theorem:
For integers a, b, and c, if a/c and b/c
and a and b are coprime, then ab/c.
Theorem:
For integers a, b, and c, if a/c and b/c and a and b are
coprime, then ab/c.
