Limit cycles for a class of three-dimensional polynomial differential systems (Q2477030)

Special perturbation of the polynomial differential system \[ \dot x = -y (1+x), \quad \! \dot y = x (1+x), \quad \! \dot z = 0, \quad x,y,z \in \mathbb{R}, \eqno(1) \] is considered. The perturbation of (1) has the form \[ \dot x = -y (1+x) + \varepsilon (ax+F), \quad \! \dot x = x (1+x) + \varepsilon (ay+G), \quad \! \dot y = -y (1+x) + \varepsilon (cz+R), \tag{2} \] where \(a, c\) are arbitrary real constants, and \(F, H, R\) are polynomials in the ring \(\mathbb{R}[x,y,z]\) of degree \(n\) starting from terms of degree \(2\). Each plane \(z = z_0 = \text{ const}\) is invariant with respect to the unperturbed system (1), and the singular point \((0, 0, z_0)\) is a center of the restriction (1) to the plane \(z = z_0\). The authors estimate the number of limit cycles of system (2) bifurcating from the periodic orbits of system (1) at any plane \(z = z_0\). Using the first-order averaging theory, they obtain at most \(n^2\) limit cycles. On the other hand, they prove that there exists a sufficiently small \(\varepsilon_0 > 0\) such that, for \(| \varepsilon| < \varepsilon_0\), there exist perturbed systems (2) having at least \(n^2\) limit cycles bifurcating from the periodic orbits of system (1).