Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-algebra-analysis-and-differential-equations-2-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2008-printed-variant/9/a/iv/solution
Past exam of the algebra, analysis and differential equations II course of the University of Oxford 2008 printed variant 9 a iv Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-31
For the linearized system a centre occurs when . Its real solutions are periodic ellipses after an invertible linear coordinate change.
As explained by a centre in the linearization need not be a nonlinear centre, for a nonlinear system these eigenvalues alone do not guarantee a centre. For example , has eigenvalues at zero but polar equations , , so trajectories spiral inward. Removing the cubic terms gives a genuine centre with the same Jacobian. Thus there is no eigenvalue-only sufficient condition for a nonlinear centre in the stated generality.
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