Localized patterns in a three-component Fitzhugh-Nagumo model revisited via an action functional (Q1663166)

The authors introduce a variational approach to revisit the study of stationary pulse solutions of a singularly perturbed FitzHugh-Nagumo system. They find some action function whose (minimizers) critical points are (stable) stationary solutions. This allows them to formally recover earlier results from the literature while avoiding most of the technical machinery (Evans function and nonlocal eigenvalue problem approaches), and to formulate new conjectures on the stability of various types of pulses (asymmetric or with several peaks).