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Quadratic Equations appeared 26 times across 3 years — 3% of Mathematics. This question is from Nature of Roots.

Year 2026 2025 2024 Total
Questions 11 10 5 26

Consider the equation x² + 4x - n = 0, where n in [20, 100] is a natural number. Then the number of all distinct values of n, for which the given equation has integral roots, is equal to

Solution & Explanation

Related Formula

For quadratic equations with integer coefficients to have integral roots, the discriminant D = b² - 4ac must be a perfect square.

Core Logic

Rewrite using perfect square completing methods:

x² + 4x + 4 = n + 4 (x + 2)² = n + 4 x = -2 ± √(n + 4)

For x to be an integer, n + 4 must be a perfect square. Given range constraint 20 ≤ n ≤ 100:

24 ≤ n + 4 ≤ 104
Step 1: Identify Perfect Squares in Range

Find perfect squares between 24 and 104: 5² = 25 6² = 36 7² = 49 8² = 64 9² = 81 10² = 100

This gives exactly 6 distinct valid perfect squares.

Step 2: Conclusion

Thus, there are exactly 6 distinct integer values for n.

Pattern Recognition

Completing the square provides intuitive bounds quicker than running full discriminant inequalities. Match integer root sets directly to explicit numerical sequence counts.

Chapter Mix

Class 10 Mathematics: Quadratic Equations Class 11 Mathematics: Complex Numbers and Quadratic Equations

Reference Study Guides

More Quadratic Equations Previous-Year Questions — Page 6

Q20 jee_main_2024_31_jan_morning Sign of Quadratic Expressions
Let S be the set of positive integral values of a for which (ax² + 2(a + 1)x + 9a + 4)/(x² - 8x + 32) < 0, x in R. Then, the number of elements in S is:
  • A. 1
  • B. 0
  • C. ∞
  • D. 3

Solution

Core Logic

For the denominator x² - 8x + 32, D = 64 - 128 < 0 and a = 1 > 0. Thus, x² - 8x + 32 > 0 x in R.

Step 1: Constraint on Numerator

Since the denominator is always positive, the numerator must be strictly negative for all x in R.

ax² + 2(a + 1)x + 9a + 4 < 0 x in R

This requires a < 0 and D < 0.

Step 2: Conclusion

Since a must be strictly less than 0, there are no positive integral values of a that satisfy the condition. Hence, S is an empty set. Number of elements is 0.

Chapter Mix

Class 11 Maths: Quadratic Equations

More Quadratic Equations Questions — jee_main_2025_04_april_morning

Practice all Quadratic Equations previous-year questions →

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JEE Physics: Waves (+15.5%) | Electrostatics: Concentric Shells (-29.7%) | Modern Physics: Photoelectric Clones (+34.2%) | Mathematics: Definite Integrals (+18.1%) | Chemistry: Coordination Splitting (-11.4%) | JEE Physics: Waves (+15.5%) | Electrostatics: Concentric Shells (-29.7%) | Modern Physics: Photoelectric Clones (+34.2%) | Mathematics: Definite Integrals (+18.1%) | Chemistry: Coordination Splitting (-11.4%)