An algebraic model for the center problem (Q2387397)

The classical center-focus problem for a planar polynomial system of differential equations can by a change to polar coordinates be transformed to the problem of determining when every solution of \[ \dot v = \sum_{i=1}^\infty a_i(x) v^{i+1}\tag{1} \] satisfies \(v(0) = v(2\pi)\), where the \(a_i\) are trigonometric polynomials whose coefficients are polynomials in the original coefficients. Letting more generally \(X_i = L^\infty(S^1)\) denote the space of coefficients \(a_i\) in (1) and \(X = \prod X_i\) the space of sequences \((a_1, a_2, \ldots)\), and \(P(a)\) the first return map, a system of polynomial equations determines the set \(S\) of systems corresponding to a center. The author defines an equivalence relation on \(X\) so that the set of equivalence classes \(G(X)\) carries a group structure and certain iterated integrals defined on \(X\), important for the center problem, define a map from \(G(X)\) to the complex plane \(\mathbb{C}\); \(G(X)\) is topologized in such a way that it is residually torsion free nilpotent, meaning that the set of finite-dimensional unipotent representations separates its elements. Among other results the author shows that if \(G_C[[r]]\) is the set of complex power series \(r + \cdots\) that converge on a neighborhood of \(0\) in \(\mathbb{C}\) then \(P\) induces a well-defined map \(\widehat P: G(X) \to G_C[[r]]: [a] \mapsto P(a)\) and the image of \(S\) in \(G(X)\) corresponds to \(\ker \widehat P\).