The four-squares conjecture for unrestricted unit-power sequences

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Let aa, bb and dd be positive integers such that dd is not a square. Set

α=a+b2d,Nα=a2−b4d,\alpha=a+b^{2}\sqrt{d},\qquad N_{\alpha}=a^{2}-b^{4}d,

and let ε=(t+ud)/2\varepsilon=(t+u\sqrt{d})/2 be a unit in OQ(d)\mathcal{O}_{\mathbb{Q}(\sqrt{d})} with t,ut,u positive integers. Define sequences (xk′)k∈Z(x_k')_{k\in\mathbb{Z}} and (yk′)k∈Z(y_k')_{k\in\mathbb{Z}} by

xk′+yk′d=αεk.x_k'+y_k'\sqrt{d}=\alpha\varepsilon^k.

The unrestricted four-squares conjecture. There are at most four distinct integer squares among the yk′y_k'. If ∣Nα∣|N_{\alpha}| is a prime power or a perfect square, then there are at most three distinct integer squares among the yk′y_k'. The conjecture extends the even-power sequence problem to all powers of the unit; the special norm conditions predict a stronger bound, but no resolution is supplied in the source.

References

Primary source

Paul M Voutier, “Bounds on the number of squares in recurrence sequences: arbitrary b, III”, arXiv:2504.07040 (2025).

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