RESEARCH / Long horizon
Wall-Sun-Sun primes as a golden-unit lift problem
RELEASED FOUNDATIONS / PROPOSED CONNECTION
Research connections
All source anchors (11)
- Golden Integer RingReleased anchor
- Golden ConjugationReleased anchor
- Golden NormReleased anchor
- Golden UnitsReleased anchor
- Scale: UnitsReleased anchor
- Scale: Unit GroupReleased anchor
- Scale: FibonacciReleased anchor
- Arith: Fibonacci RankReleased anchor
- Arith: Golden ApparitionReleased anchor
- Arith: Golden Prime SplittingReleased anchor
- Arith: Golden PellReleased anchor
Problem
The question
Let pi(m) be the Pisano period, the least positive period of the Fibonacci
recurrence modulo m. The primary problem is whether there exists a prime p
with pi(p) = pi(p^2). The paper also records the stronger conjecture that
infinitely many such primes exist.
Quoted from the introduction of arXiv:2603.25343v1:
“A natural question was asked by Wall in his paper: Can there be a prime p such that \pi(p)=\pi(p^2)?”
“It is known that up to 10^{14}, there are no such primes (cf. [16]). Still, using heuristics and probabilistic arguments, some authors conjecture the existence of infinitely many primes p satisfying \pi(p)=\pi(p^2) [7, 11].”
The same paper identifies the classical case with d = 5 and says there are no
known WSS(5) primes.
Candidate formal statement, after defining pisanoPeriod:
Existence: ∃ p : Nat, Nat.Prime p ∧ pisanoPeriod p = pisanoPeriod (p^2)
Stronger: Set.Infinite {p | Nat.Prime p ∧ pisanoPeriod p = pisanoPeriod (p^2)}
The paper states the difficulty:
“The question of Wall for these sequences is related to certain deep arithmetic properties of real quadratic fields.”
It makes this precise for its generalized recurrence: equality of the periods
modulo p and p^2 corresponds, subject to stated hypotheses, to failure of
p-rationality of the associated real quadratic field. This is why the global
existence question is not a routine finite-period exercise.
Motivation
Our foothold
- Multiplication by
phion the basis(1, phi)is the Fibonacci matrix. FrozenScale/Fibonaccialready expresses powers ofphiin Fibonacci coordinates. GoldenApparitionandFibonacciRankcontrol the first Fibonacci zero modulo a prime and thep ± 1Frobenius index;GoldenPrimeSplittingsupplies the split/inert division according to 5 modulop.- The period can therefore plausibly be re-expressed as an order of the reduced
golden unit or Fibonacci matrix. Equality at
pandp^2is then an exceptional failure of the usual order multiplication bypunder lifting. - The first reachable theorem is not existence. It is an exact bridge among the
pair recurrence period, the order of the Fibonacci matrix, and the order of
phiin an appropriate golden algebra modulop^efore = 1, 2.
Gap
Missing bridges
- No frozen
pisanoPeriodor recurrence-period API. GoldenApparitionworks modulo a prime; there is no golden algebra modulop^2and no Hensel or p-adic order-lift theorem.- There is no
p-rational field or p-adic logarithm machinery. - PID/UFD facts and the global unit classification alone do not decide the exceptional local lift.
Route
Proposed approach
- Define the Fibonacci matrix
A = [[0,1],[1,1]]overZMod m; prove thatpi(m)is its multiplicative order by tracking(F_n, F_{n+1}). - Define the reduction of
GoldenIntoverZMod mand identify multiplication byphiwithA. - For
r = pi(p), write the first lift asA^r = I + pB (mod p^2). Provepi(p^2) = pi(p)if and only ifB = 0 (mod p), and that otherwise the period acquires the expected factorp. - Use the frozen split/inert and apparition results to reduce the required
congruence to a Fibonacci/Lucas quotient modulo
p, separately in the two Legendre-symbol cases. - Only after those bridge theorems exist should a theorist choose between a conditional nonexistence theorem for a prime class, a density heuristic, or the global Wall question. Do not jump from a finite scan to existence.
Falsifier
What would falsify this route
The existential Wall question has no honest finite falsifier. A proof that no prime can satisfy the equality would refute it; a proof of finiteness would refute only the stronger infinitely-many conjecture.
The proposed bridge is finitely falsifiable: find a prime p for which the
directly computed pair period disagrees with the order of the Fibonacci
matrix/golden unit, or for which A^pi(p) = I (mod p^2) disagrees with
pi(p^2) = pi(p).
Evidence
Evidence to collect
Implement three independent exact calculations for every prime p < 10^6,
excluding and separately reporting ramified and small cases:
- direct pair-state Pisano periods modulo
pandp^2; - fast-doubling checks of
F_r mod p^2andF_{r+1} mod p^2atr = pi(p); - matrix exponentiation of
A^r mod p^2and the first-lift matrixB mod p.
Receipt fields should include p, legendreSym 5 p, rank, pi_p, pi_p2,
F_r mod p^2, F_(r+1)-1 mod p^2, and agreement of all three formulations.
This is bridge validation, not evidence that the global existential is false.
Triage
Scope assessment
wall. The repository is unusually close to the mod-p side, but the decisive
p to p^2 lift is exactly the missing deep layer.
ASSUMED-UNVERIFIED
Unverified assumptions
- Whether the open problem was resolved after arXiv v1 is unverified; this records the paper's statement, not the entire later literature.
- The order of the reduced golden unit matches the chosen Pisano-period convention without a factor of 2 or a special case; that must be proved, not assumed.
- A useful local quotient criterion can be stated entirely with the current
GoldenIntcoordinate model. - Any novelty of the proposed bridge lemmas is unassessed and belongs to the theorist's search step.