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For small positive forcing-frame frequency $\omega$, use $\mu =\hat{\mu }{\omega }^2$, $C=\omega z$ and $\tau =\omega T$ in the three-to-one spatially forced amplitude equation. The leading system is $z_{\tau }+iz={\overline{z}}^2$. Writing $z=x+iy$ gives the Hamiltonian system $(x_{\tau },y_{\tau })=(H_y/2,-H_x/2)$ and the displayed first integral. The origin is a center equilibrium; three saddle equilibria at $(0,1)$ and $(\pm \sqrt{3}/2,-1/2)$ lie on $H=1/3$. The factorization $H-1/3=(1+2y)[x^2-(y-1{)}^2/3]$ reveals a triangular heteroclinic cycle, containing closed periodic orbits for every $0<H<1/3$.

The unforced onset is a stationary pattern-forming instability. Under a horizontal translation, the critical Fourier mode transforms as $A\mapsto e^{i\varphi }A$. A cubic amplitude equation without forcing must have the same phase weight: its leading terms are $\tilde{\mu }A-c|A{|}^{2}A$. Reflection of the unforced spatial pattern conjugates $A$, permitting real coefficients in this stationary problem. They are determined by a weakly nonlinear expansion and projection onto the adjoint eigenfunction; symmetry alone does not calculate their values or guarantee a nonzero coupling.

Represent the third-harmonic forcing by a complex coefficient $F$ multiplying $e^{3i{k}_{c}x}$, whose phase weight is three. The product $F{\overline{A}}^2$ has weight $3-2=1$ and therefore resonates with the critical positive harmonic. Neither a direct third-harmonic term nor $F\overline{A}$ has the required wavenumber balance. A travelling boundary pattern makesA response phase and the sign of its coefficient can be incorporated into $\delta$. The resulting three-to-one spatially forced amplitude equation isThis retains the leading resonant forcing term, linear detuning and cubic saturation, while dropping higher powers and nonresonant harmonics. The forcing is weak, the unforced critical eigenvalue is near zero, and the amplitude varies on a slow time; very high forcing frequency outside that slow scaling would require a different averaging argument. Reduction to the specific saturating canonical form in part (i) additionally assumes $c>0$ and nonzero forcing.

For the three-to-one spatially forced amplitude equation with forcing $e\exp [3i(\Omega T+\delta )]$, put $A=B\exp [i(\Omega T+\delta )]$. The real phase constant $\delta$ belongs inside the factor of $i$. If $c>0$ and the phase has been chosen so that $e>0$, the scaling $B=(e/c)C$, $\mathcal{T}=(e^2/c)T$ gives the displayed canonical amplitude equation, with $\mu =c\tilde{\mu }/e^2$ and $\omega =c\Omega /e^2$. A negative cubic saturation coefficient cannot give the same cubic sign under a forward-time normalization; zero forcing or zero cubic coefficient requires another scaling.

The canonical three-to-one spatially forced amplitude equation has nonzero equilibrium points $C=R{e}^{i\theta }$ satisfying $\cos 3\theta =(R^2-\mu )/R$ and $\sin 3\theta =-\omega /R$. Thus $(R^2-\mu {)}^2+{\omega }^2=R^2$. Each positive amplitude has three phases separated by $2\pi /3$: two amplitude branches normally mean six complex equilibrium points. For $\mu >{\omega }^2-1/4$ the larger branch is asymptotically stable and the smaller consists of saddle equilibria, except that its zero-amplitude root at $(\mu ,\omega )=(0,0)$ is not a nonzero equilibrium point. Equality gives a saddle-node bifurcation. This phase locking breaks continuous translation symmetry down to threefold symmetry.