On common values of \(\varphi(n)\) and \(\sigma(m)\). I (Q663077)

Let \(\varphi\) denote Euler's totient function and \(\sigma\) the sum of divisors function. Erdős asked whether the set of positive integers \(n\) belonging to both the range of \(\varphi\) and the range of \(\sigma\) is infinite; write \(V_{\varphi,\sigma} (x)\) for the number of such integers \(n \leq x\). \textit{K.~Ford, F.~Luca} and \textit{C.~Pomerance} [Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 42, No. 3, 478--488 (2010; Zbl 1205.11010)] answered this question, by showing that \(V_{\varphi,\sigma} (x)\geq \exp((\log \log x)^c)\) for some constant \(c > 0\) and \(x\) large. The aim of this paper is to improve this lower bound to \[ V_{\varphi,\sigma} (x) \geq \frac{x}{(\log x)^{1+o(1)}} \] on the assumption of a uniform hypothesis concerning prime \(k\)-tuples. This asserts that, under certain conditions on the integers \(a_i\); \(b_i\); the number of positive integers \(n \leq x\) for which \(a_i n + b_i\) \((i = 1,\dots,h)\) are all primes is \(\gg C\frac{ x}{(\log x)^h}\) where the constant \(C\) is given explicitly as a product over primes and the \(\gg\) constant depends on \(h\) and another parameter \(A\). The opposite inequality \(V_{\varphi,\sigma} (x) \leq \frac{x}{(\log x)^{1+o(1)}}\) also holds, for Erdős showed that the number of positive integers \(\leq x\) in the range of \(\varphi\) is \(\frac{x}{(\log x)^{1+o(1)}}\); a similar result holds for \(\sigma\). To establish their lower bound the authors study a subset of the set of integers contributing to \(V_{\varphi,\sigma} (x)\). Motivated by structures developed by \textit{H.~Maier} and \textit{C.~Pomerance} [Acta Arith. 49, No. 3, 263--275 (1988; Zbl 0638.10045)] and by \textit{K.~Ford} [Ramanujan J. 2, No. 1--2, 67--151 (1998; Zbl 0914.11053)], two families \(B_\varphi\), \(B_\sigma\) of subsets of \(\mathbb N\) are constructed with a procedure too complicated to describe here, and then the number of \(v \leq x\) such that \(v = \varphi(m) = \sigma (n)\) with \(m \in B_\varphi \) and \(n \in B_\sigma\) is estimated from below.