A Pedagogical Analytic Reformulation of Wilson and Fermat Prime Detectors

This note presents a pedagogical analytic reformulation of two classical primality criteria: Wilson's theorem and Fermat's little theorem in base 2. Rather than proposing a new practical primality test, we reinterpret these criteria through elementary quotient constructions and associated trigonometric indicator functions. In the Wilson setting, we obtain an exact two-branch decomposition where the quotient ((n-1)!+1)/n equals an integer if n is prime, and an integer plus 1/n if n is composite (for n > 4). This leads to a normalized analytic prime indicator. In the Fermat setting, the corresponding construction detects the set of integers that satisfy the base-2 Fermat congruence, thereby including odd primes and base-2 pseudoprimes. The main purpose of the paper is conceptual and pedagogical: to show how historical, discrete congruence criteria can be recast as exact analytic objects that help students and readers connect modular arithmetic, prime detection, and continuous or trigonometric formulations.

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Publication Details

Journal
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Published
2026-03-13
DOI
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19008052
Primary Topic
History and Theory of Mathematics
Type
article
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article

A Pedagogical Analytic Reformulation of Wilson and Fermat Prime Detectors

Ricardo Adonis Caraccioli Abrego
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
History and Theory of Mathematics
article

A Pedagogical Analytic Reformulation of Wilson and Fermat Prime Detectors

Ricardo Adonis Caraccioli Abrego
article en

Abstract

This note presents a pedagogical analytic reformulation of two classical primality criteria: Wilson's theorem and Fermat's little theorem in base 2. Rather than proposing a new practical primality test, we reinterpret these criteria through elementary quotient constructions and associated trigonometric indicator functions. In the Wilson setting, we obtain an exact two-branch decomposition where the quotient ((n-1)!+1)/n equals an integer if n is prime, and an integer plus 1/n if n is composite (for n > 4). This leads to a normalized analytic prime indicator. In the Fermat setting, the corresponding construction detects the set of integers that satisfy the base-2 Fermat congruence, thereby including odd primes and base-2 pseudoprimes. The main purpose of the paper is conceptual and pedagogical: to show how historical, discrete congruence criteria can be recast as exact analytic objects that help students and readers connect modular arithmetic, prime detection, and continuous or trigonometric formulations.

Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Quality Education
Openalex Percentile: Top 19%
History and Theory of Mathematics
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