Asymmetric unimodal maps with non-universal period-doubling scaling laws (Q2200871)

This paper deals with a family of unimodal interval maps whose critical point possesses different orders on its two sides: linear and superlinear. Such a family is proved to contain a Feigenbaum-Coullet-Tresser map, occurring at the accumulation point of a logistic-like period-doubling cascade undergone by a specific one-parameter prototypical subfamily. For such a map the authors develop a novel renormalization theory, whereby the sequence of the renormalized maps converges to a degenerate map which admits an explicit description and depends only on the superlinear critical order. By introducing the notion of a semi-extension -- playing the role of the classical diffeomorphic extension -- they are able to obtain some control on the distortion of the map's iterates, and therefrom two significant geometrical properties: the scaling laws -- different for odd and even renormalization steps -- and the decay rate of the lengths of the renormalization intervals: superexponential. The authors also show that the attracting Cantor set of such a map has zero Hausdorff dimension, and establish a necessary and sufficient condition for two such sets being conjugate, i.e., universality. Finally, such a map is proved to possess no wandering intervals.