A Markov number or Markoff number is a positive integerx, y or z that is part of a solution to the Markov Diophantine equation studied by. The first few Markov numbers are appearing as coordinates of the Markov triples There are infinitely many Markov numbers and Markov triples.
There are two simple ways to obtain a new Markov triple from an old one. First, one may permute the 3 numbers x,y,z, so in particular one can normalize the triples so that x ≤ y ≤ z. Second, if is a Markov triple then by Vieta jumping so is. Applying this operation twice returns the same triple one started with. Joining each normalized Markov triple to the 1, 2, or 3 normalized triples one can obtain from this gives a graph starting from as in the diagram. This graph is connected; in other words every Markov triple can be connected to by a sequence of these operations. If we start, as an example, with we get its three neighbors, and in the Markov tree if z is set to 1, 5 and 13, respectively. For instance, starting with and trading y and z before each iteration of the transform lists Markov triples with Fibonacci numbers. Starting with that same triplet and trading x and z before each iteration gives the triples with Pell numbers. All the Markov numbers on the regions adjacent to 2's region are odd-indexed Pell numbers, and all the Markov numbers on the regions adjacent to 1's region are odd-indexed Fibonacci numbers. Thus, there are infinitely many Markov triples of the form where Fx is the xth Fibonacci number. Likewise, there are infinitely many Markov triples of the form where Px is the xth Pell number.
Other properties
Aside from the two smallest singular triples and, every Markov triple consists of three distinct integers. The unicity conjecture states that for a given Markov number c, there is exactly one normalized solution having c as its largest element: proofs of this conjecture have been claimed but none seems to be correct. Odd Markov numbers are 1 more than multiples of 4, while even Markov numbers are 2 more than multiples of 32. In his 1982 paper, Don Zagier conjectured that the nth Markov number is asymptotically given by Moreover, he pointed out that, an approximation of the original Diophantine equation, is equivalent to with f = arcosh. The conjecture was proved by Greg McShane and Igor Rivin in 1995 using techniques from hyperbolic geometry. The nth Lagrange number can be calculated from the nth Markov number with the formula The Markov numbers are sums of pairs of squares.
Let Tr denote the trace function over matrices. If X and Y are in SL2, then so that if Tr = −2 then In particular if X and Y also have integer entries then Tr/3, Tr/3, and Tr/3 are a Markov triple. If X⋅Y⋅Z = 1 then Tr = Tr, so more symmetrically if X, Y, and Z are in SL2 with X⋅Y⋅Z = 1 and the commutator of two of them has trace −2, then their traces/3 are a Markov triple.
