A Wieferich Prime Search up to 6.7 × 1015
François G. Dorais
Department of Mathematics
University of Michigan
530 Church Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
USA
Dominic Klyve
Department of Mathematics
Central Washington University
400 E. University Way
Ellensburg, WA 98926
USA
Abstract:
A Wieferich prime is a prime p such that
2p-1 ≡ 1 (mod p2).
Despite several intensive searches, only two Wieferich primes are
known: p = 1093 and p = 3511. This paper describes a new search
algorithm for Wieferich primes using double-precision Montgomery
arithmetic and a memoryless sieve, which runs significantly faster than
previously published algorithms, allowing us to report that there are
no other Wieferich primes p < 6.7 × 1015.
Furthermore, our
method allowed for the efficent collection of statistical data on
Fermat quotients, leading to a strong empirical confirmation of a
conjecture of Crandall, Dilcher, and Pomerance. Our methods proved
flexible enough to search for new solutions of ap-1
≡ 1 (mod p2)
for other small values of a, and to extend the search for
Fibonacci-Wieferich primes. We conclude, among other things, that
there are no Fibonacci-Wieferich primes less than p < 9.7 ×
1014.
Full version: pdf,
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(Concerned with sequences
A001220
A014127
A123692
A123693.)
Received June 30 2011;
revised version received September 12 2011.
Published in Journal of Integer Sequences, October 16 2011.
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