A combinatorial proof on partition function parity

MaRDI QIDQ2926266zbMATH OpenFDO

Authors Daniel C. McDonald

Publication date 23 October 2014

Published in Integers (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/1401.2659, http://www.emis.de/journals/INTEGERS/papers/o41/o41.Abstract.html

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zbMATH Keywords

paritypartition function

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Combinatorial identities, bijective combinatorics (05A19) Partitions; congruences and congruential restrictions (11P83)

Abstract: One of the most basic results concerning the number-theoretic properties of the partition function $p(n)$ is that $p(n)$ takes each value of parity infinitely often. This statement was first proved by Kolberg in 1959, and it was strengthened by Subbarao in 1966 to say that both $p(2n)$ and $p(2n+1)$ take each value of parity infinitely often. These results have received several other proofs, each relying to some extent on manipulating generating functions. We give a new, self-contained proof of Subbarao's result by constructing a series of bijections and involutions, along the way getting a more general theorem concerning the enumeration of a special subset of integer partitions.

Review text

For a positive integer \(n\), the partition function \(p(n)\) counts the number of partitions of \(n\) into positive integral parts; here a partition of \(n\) is a non-increasing list of positive integers that sum to \(n\). The folklore conjecture that asymptotically the number of \(n\leq x\) such that \(p(n)\) is even is \(\sim \frac{x}{2}\), is an important open question. The result of \textit{O. Kolberg} [Math. Scand. 7, 377--378 (1960; Zbl 0091.04402)] stating that \(p(n)\) assumes even and odd values infinitely often was later strengthened. For instance, a result of \textit{J. L. Nicolas} et al. [J. Number Theory 73, No. 2, 292--317 (1998; Zbl 0921.11050)] says that there is a constant \(C>0\) and a positive integer \(N_0\) such that for \(N>N_0\), there are at least \(CN^{1/2}\) integers \(n\leq N\) such that \(p(n)\) is even. There are similar results for the other parity. Here the author gives a new proof of a result of Kolberg [loc. cit.] and \textit{M. V. Subbarao} [Am. Math. Mon. 73, 851--854 (1966; Zbl 0173.01803)] that both \(p(2n)\) and \(p(2n+1)\) take each value of parity infinitely often. The authors provide a new proof of Subbarao's result [loc. cit.].

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Cited in

(6)

• Deducing the positive odd density of \(p(n)\) from that of a multipartition function: an unconditional proof
• On the density of the odd values of the partition function and the t-multipartition function
• Parity of Schur's partition function
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