Normal forms, Melnikov functions and bifurcations of limit cycles (Q665793)

This monograph written by excellent specialists in the fundamental theory of limit cycles represents an introduction to the most new developments and systematical presentation of major advances in this field which come mainly from the authors' own recent research results. The book consists of ten chapters which can been split into two parts: the first one (Chapters 2--5) is focused on limit cycles bifurcating from a Hopf singularity and the normal form theory is exploited here, while the second part (Chapters 6--10) considers near-Hamiltonian systems and the main used mathematical tool is the Melnikov function. Chapter 1 is an introduction, presenting the background for nonlinear dynamics, bifurcations and stability, the normal form method, the Melnikov function and Hilbert's 16th problem. In Chapter 2 the computation of normal forms is discussed. At first, a general approach which combines center manifold theory with computation of the normal form is presented. Then, a perturbation method which has proved computationally efficient is discussed in detail. Chapter 3 is devoted to the study of the computational efficiency of existing methods for deriving focus values. Three typical methods -- the Poincaré method or Takens method, a perturbation technique, and the singular point value method -- are particularly discussed. It is shown that these three methods have the same order of computational complexity. In Chapter 4, Hopf bifurcation and the computation of normal forms are applied to consider planar vector fields focused on the well-known Hilbert's 16th problem. General cubic and higher order systems are considered to find the maximum number of limit cycles that such systems can have, i.e., to find a lower bound for the Hilbert number for certain vector fields. The Liénard system is investigated and the critical periods of bifurcating periodic solutions from two special types of planar system are studied. Chapter 5 is focused on the application of Hopf bifurcation theory and normal form computation to practical systems from engineering and biological problems, as well as problems arising from the area of Hopf bifurcation control. Chapter 6 introduces the fundamental theory of the Melnikov function method. Basic definitions and fundamental lemmas are presented and the main theory on the number of limit cycles is given. In Chapter 7 a particular attention is paid to the bifurcation of limit cycles near a center. After normalizing the Hamiltonian function, detailed steps for computing the Melnikov function are described, and formulas are explicitly given. Maple programs for computing the coefficients of the Melnikov function are developed and illustrative examples are presented. Chapter 8 considers the bifurcation of limit cycles near a homoclinic or heteroclinic loop. The method for computing the Melnikov function near a homoclinic or heteroclinic loop is developed and explicit formulas for the coefficients in the expansion of the Melnikov function are derived. Double homoclinic loops are also studied in this chapter. In Chapter 9 an idea for finding more limit cycles is introduced which combines the bifurcation of limit cycles from centers, homoclinic and heteroclinic loops. Chapter 10 deals with the bifurcations of limit cycles in equivariant systems including \(S\)-equivariant vector fields, \(Z_q\)-equivariant vector fields and \(S_q\)-equivariant vector fields. Complete Maple programs used to obtain the presented results are available as supplementary materials on the publisher's website. Classic topics with recent results are presented in a clear and concise manner that will be suitable for post-graduate students studying the theory of limit cycles as well as for scientists interesting in the applications of periodic behavior.