RESEARCH / Focused target
Bala's alternating gcd-sum formula for A344598
RELEASED FOUNDATIONS / PROPOSED CONNECTION
Research connections
All source anchors (1)
- Bala's Alternating Gcd SumReleased anchor
Problem
The question
OEIS A344598 NAME (Seiichi Manyama, May 24 2021):
a(n) = Sum_{k=1..n} phi(k) * (floor(n/k)^2 - floor((n-1)/k)^2).
FORMULA (Peter Bala, Jan 01 2024):
Conjecture: a(n) = Sum_{k = 1..2n} (-1)^k * gcd(k, 4n). Cf. A344372. - Peter Bala, Jan 01 2024
Both quotations are copied verbatim from the claim in
Library/Arith/bala2024a344598.md. The target is the equality for every positive n.
范围与诚实边界: This is a modest identity (tier 1). The two divisor-sum
formulas a(n) = Sum_{d|n} phi(d)*(2*n/d - 1) and
a(n) = Sum_{d|n} (2*d*tau(d) - sigma(d))*mu(n/d) were already proved elsewhere
by Daniel Weber, as credited in Mikhail Kurkov's Mar 31 2026 comment. They are
not the target. The target is the alternating-gcd formula, which the search
seat's 2026-09-08 reading recorded as still marked Conjecture. Natural division
and truncated subtraction define a; the alternating sum and theorem subtraction
are in the integers.
Motivation
Our foothold
This is a first-tier recent OEIS conjecture. KPI = open problems resolved, not module counts or a finite prefix checked. The module proves the assertion for every positive natural-number index.
Gap
Missing bridges
The supplied search reports no proof found: the search seat read the OEIS entry and revision history on 2026-09-08 and searched the identifier on arXiv, MathOverflow, and GitHub. This Stage-B seat has no network and did not repeat those searches. No-proof-found is restricted to that reported search scope.
Route
Proposed approach
The totient bridge a_eq_two_pillai_sub proves a(n) = 2*pillai(n) - n:
floor-square increments select the divisors of n, gcd fibres give the
totient-weighted quotient sum, and Mathlib Nat.sum_totient supplies n.
Two gcd bookkeeping identities finish the proof. pillai_four_mul proves
pillai(4n) + 4*pillai(n) = 4*pillai(2n) by an even/odd range decomposition
and equality of shifted odd-index gcd blocks. altGcdSum_eq proves
2*altGcdSum(n) + 2n = 4*pillai(2n) - pillai(4n) by a reflected-index
construction with endpoint accounting. Combining these identities gives
bala_conjecture. Imports are Mathlib-only; generality is G.
Falsifier
What would falsify this route
A positive natural-number index n for which the defining totient sum differs from the alternating gcd sum would contradict the assertion. The orchestrator's exact numerical check is supporting evidence only, not the universal proof.
Evidence
Evidence to collect
- Lean module:
D5/S3/Factorization/AlternatingGcdSumPillai.lean. - Main public theorem:
bala_conjecture. - Companions:
a_eq_two_pillai_sub,pillai_four_mul,altGcdSum_eq. - Axioms: std3 (
propext,Classical.choice,Quot.sound) for each public theorem, as recorded by the implementation seat's#print axiomsreceipt. - The main theorem quantifies over all
n : ℕwith1 ≤ n; no finite search bound is a hypothesis.
Triage
Scope assessment
theorem. The formal proof closes Bala's universal alternating-gcd assertion.
ASSUMED-UNVERIFIED
Unverified assumptions
The OEIS quotes and attributions were supplied by the orchestrator and copied from the Library note. OEIS revision history was read by the search seat on 2026-09-08, not by this seat. Literature scope is the OEIS entry and history plus identifier searches on arXiv, MathOverflow, and GitHub, as reported above; it is not an exhaustive literature search or a claim of first-publication priority. This seat did not independently verify the online sources, the orchestrator's numerical check, or the implementation seat's axiom receipt. Source-to-Lean fidelity and publication priority are not kernel-checked facts.