Remarks on nonlinear planar control systems which are linearizable by feedback (Q1060171)

The paper deals with the feedback linearization of smooth affine control systems in \({\mathbb{R}}^ 2\). It is shown that globally linearizable systems in \({\mathbb{R}}^ 2\) are not generic in any ''reasonable'' topology. It is proved, however, that in the Whitney topology globally linearizable planar systems occupy an open subset of the space of systems. Two important related results are obtained. The first one says that in any topology on \(C^{\infty}({\mathbb{R}}^ n)\), making \(C^{\infty}({\mathbb{R}}^ n)\) a locally multiplicatively convex topological algebra, the set \(\{f\in C^{\infty}({\mathbb{R}}^ n)\) \(|\) \(f(x)\neq 0\) everywhere in \({\mathbb{R}}^ n\}\) has no interior points (observe that this set is clearly open in the Whitney topology, but then \(C^{\infty}({\mathbb{R}}^ n)\) is only a topological ring, not an algebra). The other result provides an extended ratio condition for a map \(f: {\mathbb{R}}^ n\to {\mathbb{R}}^ n\) to be a diffeomorphism onto its image.