WOLFRAM|DEMONSTRATIONS PROJECT

A Necklace of Equilaterals

​
Let
P
be an
n
-gon (a polygon with
n
sides). Construct equilateral triangles on the sides of
P
. The third vertices of the triangles form another
n
-gon,
E(P)
. Given an
n
-gon
Q
, is it possible to find an
n
-gon
P
such that
Q=E(P)
? This Demonstration constructs
P
(with blue interior) for the case
n=7
. In general, for odd
n
the problem has a unique solution whereas for even
n
the problem either has no solution or an infinite number of solutions.