Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2022/ia/paper-2/6a/b/solution

The stationary equations are
Thus and , giving
The Hessian matrix is
At either nonzero stationary point,
so both are strict local minima.
Along a line through the origin,
where
When and ,
Consequently the origin is a local minimum along the line when
including the equality cases because the positive quartic term then leads. It is also a minimum on the vertical line. It is a local maximum along the line when
In the first case the graph is locally bowl-shaped. In the second it initially bends downward from the origin, but the positive quartic term eventually turns it upward, producing the usual double-well profile.

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