Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2002 / iii / Paper 56 / 2 / f / Solution

Here $\mu >{\mu }_H=\lambda (\lambda -1)>0$. The origin is a saddle equilibrium, $P_{+}$ is repelling, and $P_{-}$ lies in $u<0$. Thus there is no saddle equilibrium in the interior of $u>0$ to which this periodic orbit could become homoclinic. The origin cannot supply the missing loop: the line $u=0$ is invariant and is precisely its local stable manifold. An orbit in $u>0$ cannot lie on that stable manifold, so the positive periodic orbit cannot close into a homoclinic orbit to the origin either.

The outgoing trajectories do not escape to infinity in this regime. To see the large-amplitude turning mechanism, put $w=v/u$ once $v\ge 0$. Direct differentiation givesSince $\lambda >1$, the quadratic $w^2-w+\lambda$ is uniformly positive. At large $u$ while $0\le w\le 1$, $\dot{w}$ is bounded below by a positive multiple of $u$, whereas $\dot{u}/u\le \mu +u$. Thus $w$ rises by a fixed amount per bounded increase in $\log u$: the trajectory reaches $w>1$ and then $w>1+\mu /u$, where $\dot{u}<0$, before $u$ can diverge. The same estimate bounds repeated outgoing excursions; large positive $v$ also decreases when $v>u^2$. Initially negative $v$ increases until it becomes nonnegative. These nullcline and ratio estimates give bounded forward excursions.

The repelling upper equilibrium is therefore surrounded by recurrent trajectories, and the Poincaré-Bendixson alternative supplies periodic motion rather than a saddle equilibrium connection. The supercritical attracting periodic orbit persists in the displayed regime, with trajectories spiralling away from the upper equilibrium and approaching it. The last panel of the portrait figure shows this behavior; the boundary stable manifold of the origin is kept separate.