irreducible fraction

An irreducible fraction (or fraction in lowest terms or reduced fraction) is a fraction in which the numerator and denominator are integers that have no other common divisors than 1 (and -1, when negative numbers are considered). In other words, a fraction ^a/_b is irreducible if and only if a and b are coprime, that is, if a and b have a greatest common divisor of 1. In higher mathematics, "irreducible fraction" may also refer to rational fractions such that the numerator and the denominator are coprime polynomials. Every positive rational number can be represented as an irreducible fraction in exactly one way.