Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2006/ii/paper-4/7e/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2006 ii Paper 4 7E Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-14
The nonzero fixed point of the logistic map is , with multiplier . It is stable for , and its multiplier crosses at . To identify the emerging orbit explicitly, factorThe remaining two roots, interchanged by , areThey coincide with at three and are distinct for . Their cycle multiplier isIt lies between and for . This establishes the first period-doubling bifurcation and the stable bifurcating two-cycle.
At , and . The second flip is nondegenerate: for at either cycle point, the cubic flip coefficient is when . Here denotes the Schwarzian derivative. Since and , this coefficient is positive. Locally, after following the fixed point of , its second iterate has the form , with . Nonzero roots therefore appear with on the increasing-parameter side. These are a four-cycle of , proving the second period-doubling bifurcation occurs at .
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