Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-algebra-analysis-and-differential-equations-1-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2007/9/solution
Past exam of the algebra, analysis and differential equations 1 course of the University of Oxford 2007 9 Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-31
The second equilibrium point equation gives . Substituting into the first gives , so . Put , with . ThenThe function is strictly increasing on , since . It starts at zero and tends to infinity, so it takes the value one exactly once. Moreover , so . This proves uniqueness of the stated equilibrium point.
At that point , and the Jacobian matrix isIts trace is and determinant . The characteristic discriminant is , so its two eigenvalues areThey are distinct and positive, with eigenvectors and respectively. Thus the linearized critical point is an unstable node. It is a hyperbolic equilibrium, so the original nonlinear equilibrium point is also locally repelling; this last observation is stronger than the requested linearized classification.
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