Division Theorem/Positive Divisor

Theorem

For every pair of integers $a, b$ where $b > 0$, there exist unique integers $q, r$ such that $a = q b + r$ and $0 \le r < b$:

$\forall a, b \in \Z, b > 0: \exists! q, r \in \Z: a = q b + r, 0 \le r < b$


In the above equation:

$a$ is the dividend
$b$ is the divisor
$q$ is the quotient
$r$ is the principal remainder, or, more usually, just the remainder.


Proof

This result can be split into two parts:

Proof of Existence

For every pair of integers $a, b$ where $b > 0$, there exist integers $q, r$ such that $a = q b + r$ and $0 \le r < b$:

$\forall a, b \in \Z, b > 0: \exists q, r \in \Z: a = q b + r, 0 \le r < b$


Proof of Uniqueness

For every pair of integers $a, b$ where $b > 0$, the integers $q, r$ such that $a = q b + r$ and $0 \le r < b$ are unique:

$\forall a, b \in \Z, b > 0: \exists! q, r \in \Z: a = q b + r, 0 \le r < b$


Sources

  • 1980: David M. Burton: Elementary Number Theory (revised ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Chapter $2$: Divisibility Theory in the Integers: $2.1$ The Division Algorithm: Theorem $2 \text{-} 1$ (Division Algorithm)
  • 1994: H.E. Rose: A Course in Number Theory (2nd ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): $1$ Divisibility: $1.1$ The Euclidean algorithm and unique factorization: Theorem $1.1$
  • 2014: Christopher Clapham and James Nicholson: The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Mathematics (5th ed.) ... (previous) ... (next): Division Algorithm