Analyzing the Setup
A circle nestled in the first quadrant that is tangent to both the x-axis and the y-axis possesses a center at (r,r), where r is the radius of the circle.
The distance from the center to both axes is exactly r. Consequently, the equation of this circle is defined as:
The Point of Contact
Consider a point P(α,β) that lies on the circumference of this circle. By substituting these coordinates into the circle's equation, we obtain:
Expanding this expression yields:
By simplifying the terms, we arrive at a fundamental relationship, which we shall denote as Relation (1):
The Line of Intersection
The circle touches the axes at points A(r,0) and B(0,r). The line segment AB connecting these points follows the intercept form equation:
We are given that the perpendicular distance from point P(α,β) to this line is 11. Applying the standard perpendicular distance formula:
The Algebraic Symphony
To resolve the absolute value and the radical, we square both sides of the equation:
2(α+β−r)2=121⟹(α+β−r)2=242
Expanding the trinomial (α+β−r)2 using the identity (a+b+c)2=a2+b2+c2+2ab+2bc+2ca, we get:
Observe that the terms α2+β2−2rα−2rβ+r2 are exactly equal to 0, as established in Relation (1). Substituting this into our expanded equation, the expression collapses to:
Dividing by 2, we reach the final result: