No label defined (Q4935835)

Consider the system: \[ \dot x= H_y'+ f(x,y),\quad \dot y= -H_x'+ g(x,y),\tag{1} \] with \(H(x,y)\in C^2\), \(f,g\in C^1\). Let \(D= \{(x,y)\mid h_1< H(x,y)< h_2\}\), assume \(H= h_2\) is a simple closed curve, it is the outer boundary of \(D\); and \(H= h_1\) consists of \(n-1\) \((n\geq 2)\) simple closed curves, they are the inner boundaries of \(D\). Let \[ F(x,y)= (H- h_0)(f_x'+ g_y')- \alpha(f\cdot H_x'+ g\cdot H_y'), \] where \(\alpha,h_0\leq h_1\) are real numbers. By using a Dulac function \(B= 1/(H- h_0)^\alpha\), the authors prove the theorem: Assume there exist \(\alpha>0\), \(h_0\leq h_1\), such that \(F(x,y)\) is of constant sign on \(D\), and is not identically zero on any open set in \(D\). Then (1) has at most \(n-1\) limit cycles and separatrix cycles in \(D\). Especially, (1) has at most one limit cycle surrounding all the critical points in \(D\). A similar theorem is proved for the system: \[ \dot x= y|y|^\gamma,\quad \dot y=-g(x)- f(x,y)y|y|^\alpha,\quad \gamma>-1,\;\alpha>-1.\tag{2} \] Two interesting examples are given as follows: \[ \dot x= y(y^2- 1)- \lambda x(x^2+ y^2- a),\quad \dot y=-x(x^2-1)- \lambda y(x^2+ y^2-a),\quad a,\lambda>0,\tag{3} \] \[ \dot x= y,\quad \dot y= -(\textstyle{{1\over 4}} x^4-{1\over 2} x^2+\lambda)y- x(x^2- 1).\tag{4} \] {}.