Problem

Source: Brazil EGMO TST2 2024 #1

Tags: function, number theory, Order



Let \( \mathbb{N} \) be the set of all positive integers. We say that a function \( f: \mathbb{N} \to \mathbb{N} \) is Georgian if \( f(1) = 1 \) and, for every positive integer \( n \), there exists a positive integer \( k \) such that \[ f^{(k)}(n) = 1, \quad \text{where } f^{(k)} = f \circ f \cdots \circ f \quad \text{(applied } k \text{ times)}. \]If \( f \) is a Georgian function, we define, for each positive integer \( n \), \( \text{ord}(n) \) as the smallest positive integer \( m \) such that \( f^{(m)}(n) = 1 \). Determine all positive real numbers \( c \) for which there exists a Georgian function such that, for every positive integer \( n \geq 2024 \), it holds that \( \text{ord}(n) \geq cn - 1 \).