OFFSET
1,2
COMMENTS
The length of the period of A000035 (n=2), A010872 (n=3), A109718 (n=4), A070471 (n=5), A010875 (n=6), A070472 (n=7), A109753 (n=8), A167176 (n=9), A008960 (n = 10), etc. (see also comment in A000578 from R. J. Mathar).
Conjecture: let a_p(n) be the length of the period of the sequence k^p mod n where p is a prime, then a_p(n) = n/p if n == 0 (mod p^2) else a_p(n) = n.
For example: sequence k^7 mod 98 gives 1, 30, 31, 18, 19, 48, 49, 50, 79, 80, 67, 68, 97, 0, 1, 30, 31, 18, 19, 48, 49, 50, 79, 80, 67, 68, 97, 0, ... (period 14), 7 is a prime, 98 == 0 (mod 7^2) and 98/7 = 14.
LINKS
Ray Chandler, Table of n, a(n) for n = 1..10000
Ilya Gutkovskiy, Extended graphical example
Index entries for linear recurrences with constant coefficients, signature (0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 2, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, -1).
FORMULA
Apparently: a(n) = 2*a(n-9) - a(n-18).
Empirical g.f.: x*(1 + 2*x + 3*x^2 + 4*x^3 + 5*x^4 + 6*x^5 + 7*x^6 + 8*x^7 + 3*x^8 + 8*x^9 + 7*x^10 + 6*x^11 + 5*x^12 + 4*x^13 + 3*x^14 + 2*x^15 + x^16) / ((1 - x)^2*(1 + x + x^2)^2*(1 + x^3 + x^6)^2). - Colin Barker, Feb 21 2017
EXAMPLE
a(9) = 3 because reading 1, 8, 27, 64, 125, 216, 343, 512, ... modulo 9 gives 1, 8, 0, 1, 8, 0, 1, 8, 0, ... with period length 3.
MATHEMATICA
a[1] = 1; a[n_] := For[k = 1, True, k++, If[Mod[k^3, n] == 0 && Mod[(k + 1)^3 , n] == 1, Return[k]]]; Table[a[n], {n, 1, 81}]
CROSSREFS
KEYWORD
nonn,easy
AUTHOR
Ilya Gutkovskiy, Feb 21 2017
STATUS
approved