Split the Array to Make Coprime Products - Complete Solution Guide
Split the Array to Make Coprime Products is LeetCode problem 2584, a Hard level challenge. This complete guide provides step-by-step explanations, multiple solution approaches, and optimized code in python3, java, cpp, c.
Problem Statement
You are given a 0-indexed integer array nums of length n . A split at an index i where 0 <= i <= n - 2 is called valid if the product of the first i + 1 elements and the product of the remaining elements are coprime. For example, if nums = [2, 3, 3] , then a split at the index i = 0 is valid because 2 and 9 are coprime, while a split at the index i = 1 is not valid because 6 and 3 are not coprime. A split at the index i = 2 is not valid because i == n - 1 . Return the smallest index i at which t
Detailed Explanation
The problem asks us to find the smallest index in an array `nums` where we can split the array into two parts such that the product of the elements in the first part and the product of the elements in the second part are coprime. Two numbers are coprime if their greatest common divisor (GCD) is 1. If no such split exists, return -1.
Solution Approach
The solution leverages prime factorization and a greedy approach. First, it pre-computes the smallest prime factor (SPF) for each number up to MAX_VAL. Then, for each element in `nums`, it finds the set of its prime factors. It stores the last occurrence of each prime factor in a hash map. Finally, it iterates through the array, maintaining a `max_reach`. For each index `i`, `max_reach` tracks the furthest index any prime factor seen up to `i` has occurred. If `max_reach` is equal to `i`, it means that all prime factors seen up to index `i` do not appear in the subarray `nums[i+1...]`, indicating that the product of `nums[0...i]` is coprime with the product of `nums[i+1...]`. Therefore `i` is a valid split point.
Step-by-Step Algorithm
- Step 1: Initialize an array `spf` of size MAX_VAL such that `spf[i]` stores the smallest prime factor of `i`.
- Step 2: Populate the `spf` array using the Sieve of Eratosthenes. This allows for efficient prime factorization later.
- Step 3: Create a function `get_prime_factors` that takes an integer as input and returns a set of its prime factors using the pre-computed `spf` array.
- Step 4: Create a list `factors_list` where `factors_list[i]` is the set of prime factors of `nums[i]`.
- Step 5: Create a hash map `last_occurrence` to store the last index at which each prime factor appears in `nums`.
- Step 6: Iterate through `nums` up to `n - 2`. For each index `i`, update `max_reach` to be the maximum of its current value and the last occurrence of any prime factor of `nums[i]`. `max_reach` essentially represents the latest index any of the prime factors encountered so far have been seen.
- Step 7: If `max_reach` is equal to `i`, it indicates that the product of elements up to index `i` is coprime with the product of elements from index `i+1` to the end of the array. In this case, return `i`.
- Step 8: If the loop completes without finding a valid split point, return -1.
Key Insights
- Insight 1: We don't need to calculate the actual products. Instead, we can focus on the prime factors of each number. Two products are coprime if they share no common prime factors.
- Insight 2: Pre-computing the smallest prime factor (SPF) for all numbers up to the maximum value in `nums` allows us to efficiently find the prime factors of each number.
- Insight 3: Keeping track of the last occurrence of each prime factor helps determine the furthest point we need to extend our left subarray to ensure coprimality with the remaining subarray.
Complexity Analysis
Time Complexity: O(N*log(MAX_VAL))
Space Complexity: O(MAX_VAL)
Topics
This problem involves: Array, Hash Table, Math, Number Theory.
Companies
Asked at: Zomato.