Exact traveling wave solutions and bifurcations in a nonlinear elastic rod equation (Q966528)

Consider the nonlinear wave equation \[ {\partial^2u\over\partial t^2}- c^2_0 \Biggl[1+ \sum^n_{j=2} ja_j\Biggl({\partial u\over\partial x}\Biggr)^{j-1}\Biggr] {\partial^2u\over\partial x^2}- {\nu^2 R^2\over 2}{\partial^4u\over\partial t^2\partial x^2}= 0,\tag{\(*\)} \] where \(c_0,\nu,R,a_2,\dots, a_n\) are given parameters. The authors look for traveling wave solutions \(u(x,t)= \psi(x-ct)\) with wave speed \(c\). The corresponding ODE can be integrated leading to an ODE-system of the form \[ {d\phi\over d\xi}= y,\quad {dy\over d\xi}= \alpha\phi- \sum^n_{j=2} \beta_j \phi^j\tag{\(**\)} \] for which there exists a Hamiltonian. The authors determine exact parametric representations of homoclinic, heteroclinic and periodic solutions of \((**)\) for different parametric situations.