Quadratic systems with maximum number of limit cycles (Q2654929)

Consider the planar polynomial system \[ {dx\over dt}= \sum^2_{i+j=0} a_{ij} x^i y^j,\quad {dy\over dt}= \sum^2_{i+j=0} b_{ij} x^i y^j\tag{\(*\)} \] with real coefficients. It is known that any limit cycle of \((*)\) surrounds a unique equilibrium which is a simple focus, and that system \((*)\) has at most two foci. In case that \((*)\) has a unique focus, there exist systems \((*)\) with one, two or three limit cycles surrounding the unique focus. In case of two foci, the following distributions of limit cycles are known: (1,0), (2,0), (3,0), (1,1), (2,1), (3,1). The author presents an algorithm to determine coefficients \(a_{ij}\), \(b_{ij}\) such that system \((*)\) has either three limit cycles surrounding a unique focus or the distribution (3,1), where all limit cycles are of ``normal size''. The basic idea is to reduce \((*)\) to a Liénard system of the form \[ du/dt= v,\quad dv/dt= -g(u)- f(u)v \] and to construct generalized Dulac functions by means of some optimization problem.