SHILNIKOV BIFURCATION: STATIONARY QUASI-REVERSAL BIFURCATION

Abstract

A generic stationary instability that arises in quasi-reversible systems is studied. It is characterized by the confluence of three eigenvalues at the origin of complex plane with only one eigenfunction. We characterize the dynamics through the normal form that exhibits in particular, Shilnikov chaos, for which we give an analytical prediction. We construct a simple mechanical system, Shilnikov particle, which exhibits this quasi-reversal instability and displays its chaotic behavior.