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CIE IGCSE Maths: Extended Your notes

Prime Factors, HCF & LCM

Contents
Prime Factor Decomposition
HCF & LCM

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Prime Factor Decomposition

Your notes
Prime Factor Decomposition
What are prime factors?
Factors are things that are multiplied together
Prime numbers are numbers which have exactly two factors
Themselves and 1
The prime factors of a number are therefore all the prime numbers which multiply to give that number
You should remember the first few prime numbers:
2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, …
How do I find the prime factors?
Use a FACTOR TREE to find prime factors
Split a number up into a pair of factors which multiply to give the number
Continue splitting up numbers until you get to a prime number
These can not be split into anything other than 1 and themselves
A number can be uniquely written as a product of prime factors
Write the prime factors IN ASCENDING ORDER with × between
e.g. 72 = 2 × 2 × 2 × 3 × 3
Write with POWERS if asked
e.g. 72 = 23 × 32
How might a question be worded?
This is one of those topics where questions can use different phrases that all mean the same thing …
Express … as the product of prime factors
Find the prime factor decomposition of …
Find the prime factorisation of …

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Worked example
Your notes
Find the prime factors of 360.

Give your answer in the form 2p × 3q × 5r , where p , q and r are integers to be found.

For each number find any two numbers, (not 1), which are factors and write those as the next pair of
numbers in the tree.
If a number is prime, put a circle around it.
When all the end numbers are circled, you are done!

Write down all of the circled numbers, don't miss any of the repeated ones.For any numbers that are
repeated, write them as powers of the number.

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You don't usually have to write a "1" as a power if there is a number that isn't repeated, but in this
question, it has asked for it.
Your notes

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Uses of Prime Factor Decomposition

When a number has been written as in its prime factor decomposition (PFD), it can be used to find out if Your notes
that number is a square or cube number, or to find the square root of that number without using a calculator.
How can I use PFD to tell if a number is a square or a cube number?
If all the indices in the prime factor decomposition of a number are even, then that number is a square
number
For example, the prime factor decomposition of 7056 is 24 × 32 × 72, so it must be a square number
If all the indices in the prime factor decomposition of a number are multiples of 3, then that number is a
cube number
For example, the prime factor decomposition of 1728000 is 29 × 33 × 53, so it must be a cube
number
How can I use PFD to find the square root of a square number?
Write the number in its prime factor decomposition
All the indices should be even if it is a square number
Halve all of the indices
This is the prime factor decomposition of the square root of the number
If you need to write the square root as an integer then multiply the prime factors together
How can I use PFD to find the exact square root of a number?
Steps to find the square root of any other number which has been written as a product of its prime
factors
STEP 1
Write the prime factors out as individual factors
STEP 2
Pair the factors together so that any two prime factors that are the same can be written just once
as a power of 2
STEP 3
Find the product of each of these paired prime factors, ignoring that each one is squared
This number will be written as an integer in front of the square root sign
STEP 4
Multiply the remaining factors together
None of your remaining factors should be the same
This number will go inside the square root symbol
STEP 5
Write the answer as a product of the integer from step 3 and the square root of the integer from
step 4
For example, the prime factor decomposition of 360 is 23 × 32 × 5
This can be written as 22 × 2 × 32 × 5 or 22 × 32 × 2 × 5

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So the exact square root of 360 is 2 × 3 × 2 × 5 = 6 10

Your notes
Worked example
N = 23 × 32 × 57 and AN = B where A is an integer and B is a non-zero square number.
Find the smallest value of A .

Substitute N = 23 × 32 × 57 into the formula AN = B.

A(23 × 32 × 57 ) = B
2, 3 and 5 are all prime numbers, so for A(23 × 32 × 57 ) to be a square number, its prime factors must all
have even powers.
Consider the prime factors A needs to have to make all the values on the left hand side have even
powers.
(2 × 5) (23 × 32 × 57) = B
24 × 3 2 × 5 8 = B
So A when written as a product of its prime factors, is 2 × 5.
Make sure you A as an integer value in the answer.
A = 10

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HCF & LCM

Your notes
Highest Common Factor (HCF)
What is the highest common factor (HCF) of two numbers?
A common factor of two numbers is a number that both numbers can be divided by
1 is a common factor of any two numbers
To find common factors you can write out the factors of each number and identify the numbers that
appear in both lists
The factors of a common factor of two numbers will also be common factors
6 is a common factor of 24 and 30
Therefore 1, 2, 3, 6 are also common factors of 24 and 30
The highest common factor is the largest common factor between two numbers
This is useful when simplifying fractions or factorising expressions
How do I find the highest common factor (HCF) of two numbers?
Write each number as a product of its prime factors
Find the prime factors that are common to both numbers
Be careful with how many times a prime factor appears
12 = 2 × 2 × 3 and 10 = 2 × 5
So only one of the 2s is a common prime factor
Multiply the common prime factors together
Using a Venn diagram can help
Put the common prime factors in the centre
Put the other prime factors in the relevant circles
The HCF is the product of all the numbers in the centre

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Worked example
Your notes
Find the highest common factor of 42 and 90.
Write as a product of prime factors
42 = 2 × 3 × 7
90 = 2 × 3 × 3 × 5
Write the prime factors in a Venn diagram if needed.

Multiply the common prime factors.

HCF = 2 × 3
HCF = 6

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Lowest Common Multiple (LCM)

What is the lowest common multiple (LCM) of two numbers? Your notes
A common multiple of two numbers is a number that appears in both of their times tables
The product of the two numbers is always a common multiple
To find common multiples you can write out the multiples of each number and identify the numbers
that appear in both lists
The multiples of a common multiple of two numbers will also be common multiples
60 is a common multiple of 12 and 10
Therefore 60, 120, 180, 240, etc are also common multiples of 12 and 10
The lowest common multiple is the smallest common multiple between two numbers
This is useful when adding or subtracting fractions
How do I find the lowest common multiple (LCM) of two numbers?
Write each number as a product of its prime factors
Find the prime factors of the first number that are not prime factors of the second number
Be careful with how many times a prime factor appears
12 = 2 × 2 × 3 and 10 = 2 × 5
So 3 and one of the 2s are not prime factors of the 10
Equivalently 5 is not a prime factor of 12
Multiply the first number by these extra prime factors
Either multiply 10 by 3 and 2
Or multiply 12 by 5
Both ways will give you the same answer
Using a Venn diagram can help
Put the common prime factors in the centre
Put the other prime factors in the relevant circles
The LCM is the product of all the numbers in the Venn diagram

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Worked example
Your notes
Find the lowest common multiple of 42 and 90.
Write as a product of prime factors.
42 = 2 × 3 × 7
90 = 2 × 3 × 3 × 5
Write the prime factors in a Venn diagram if needed.

Multiply all the prime factors.

LCM = 7 × 2 × 3 × 3 × 5
This is the same as doing 42 × 3 × 5 or 90 × 7
LCM = 630

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