Classification of dynamical systems based on a decomposition of their vector fields (Q444936)

This paper is concerned with the question whether the flows of two continuously differentiable complete vector fields on \(\mathbb{R}^n\) are globally topologically conjugate or topologically equivalent. According to a theorem of \textit{E. Presnov} [Chaos Solitons Fractals 14, No. 5, 759--764 (2002; Zbl 1008.37010)], every \(\mathcal{C}^1\)-vector field \(f:\mathbb{R}^n \rightarrow \mathbb{R}^n\) has a unique decomposition \(f(x) = \nabla\varphi(x) + u(x)\) into the gradient of a function \(\varphi:\mathbb{R}^n\rightarrow\mathbb{R}\) with \(\varphi(0)=0\) and a vector field \(u\) whose flow preserves the spheres, or equivalently, \(\langle u(x),x \rangle = 0\). The main result of the paper asserts that given vector fields \(f,g:\mathbb{R}^n \rightarrow \mathbb{R}^n\) have topologically conjugate flows provided that two conditions are satisfied: (1) The sphere-preserving parts of their decompositions are topologically conjugate and (2) Their gradient parts have unique globally attracting (or repelling) fixed points at the origin. The paper also contains a short discussion of necessary conditions for topological equivalence of sphere-preserving flows related to the fixed point sets of their lifts to the Bendixson sphere (the one-point compactification of their domain \(\mathbb{R}^n\)). Finally, three particular families of systems are studied, namely the well-known Lorenz systems, and similar, so-called Lorenz-like systems studied by \textit{J. Lü} and \textit{G. Chen} [Int. J. Bifurcation Chaos Appl. Sci. Eng. 12, No. 3, 659--661 (2002; Zbl 1063.34510)] and \textit{J. Lü, G. Chen} and \textit{D. Cheng} [Int. J. Bifurcation Chaos Appl. Sci. Eng. 14, No. 5, 1507--1537 (2004; Zbl 1129.37323)]. For specific parameter values, the techniques employed by the authors allow to show that some of these systems are topologically equivalent, and others are not.