Hopf-like bifurcation in a wave equation at a removable singularity (Q6165627)

This paper concerns 1D semilinear viscoelastic wave equations of the type \[ \partial_t^2u-\partial_x^2u-\alpha \partial_t\partial_x^2u+mu=(\partial_tu)^{2p+1} \] with periodic boundary conditions (with respect to the space variable \(x\)). Here \(p\) is a natural number, \(m>0\) is irrational, and \(\alpha>0\) is the small bifurcation parameter. It is shown that for all integers \(k \ge 2\) there exist \(M_k>0\) and \(c_k>0\) such that for all \(\rho \in (0,M_k)\) there exist \(\alpha_\rho \in (0,c_k\rho^{2p+1/2})\) and \(\omega_\rho \approx \sqrt{1+m}\) and a \(C^k\)-smooth solution (of the problem with \(\alpha=\alpha_\rho\)) of the type \[ u_\rho(t,x)=\rho \cos(\omega_\rho t)\sin x+v_\rho(\omega_\rho t,x) \] with \(v_\rho(t+2\pi,x)=v_\rho(t,x)\) and \(v_\rho=O(\rho^{2p+1/2})\) for \(\rho \to 0\) with respect to a suitable Sobolev norm. There are some similarities of that result to classical Hopf bifurcation for semilinear damped wave equations [\textit{N. Kosovalić} and \textit{B. Pigott}, J. Dyn. Differ. Equations 31, No. 1, 129--152 (2019; Zbl 1421.35021); \textit{I. Kmit} and the reviewer, J. Dyn. Differ. Equations 34, No. 2, 1393--1431 (2022; Zbl 1491.35012)]: No need of Nash-Moser iterations or of Diophantine conditions, application of the Lyapunov-Schmidt procedure, solution of the range equation by means of the contraction mapping principle. But there are also essential differences: The bifurcation equation is solved by means of Brouwer's fixed point principle. And it remains open if there is something like local uniqueness (branches of bifurcating solutions) and structural stability (what happens if \(m\) is rational?).