Parabola Tangent Meeting the Unit Circle

Problem

figure

Let OO be the origin and let FF be the focus of the parabola C1: x2=2pyC_1:\ x^2=2py (with p>0p>0). The tangent line to C1C_1 at a point PP is also tangent to the circle C2: x2+y2=1C_2:\ x^2+y^2=1, touching it at the point QQ.

1. When the line PQPQ has equation x−y−2=0x-y-\sqrt2=0, find the equation of the parabola C1C_1.

2. As the positive number pp varies, let S1S_1 and S2S_2 be the areas of △FPQ\triangle FPQ and △FOQ\triangle FOQ respectively. Find the minimum value of S1S2\dfrac{S_1}{S_2}.

Answer

Solution

Difficulty8/10
TopicsTangent Circle, conic sections, AM-GM, analytic geometry, Discriminant

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