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For $\omega \ne 0$, put $\mu =\hat{\mu }{\omega }^2$, $C=\omega z$ and $\tau =\omega T$, where $z=\hat{C}$. Then $C_T={\omega }^2{z}_{\tau }$ and division by ${\omega }^2$ givesWe may take $\omega >0$ without loss of the dynamics by conjugating the original equation if necessary; otherwise $\tau$ reverses the time orientation. The scaling is singular at $\omega =0$ and is not a transformation for that exactly zero-frequency case.

The Hamiltonian limit of three-to-one forcing drops the terms proportional to $\omega$. For $z=x+iy$ the remaining real system isThe proposed first integral isIndeed $x_{\tau }=H_y/2$ and $y_{\tau }=-H_x/2$, hence $H_{\tau }=0$. The unperturbed equation is a planar Hamiltonian system, with a center equilibrium at the origin and three saddle equilibria atAll saddle equilibria have $H=1/3$. The factorizationshows that their central separatrix consists of the three sides of an equilateral triangle. Each level $0<H<1/3$ inside this triangle is a closed periodic orbit. Indeed, inside the triangle $0<r<1$ and ${\partial }_{r}H=2r(1+r\sin 3\theta )>0$. Each ray from the origin therefore meets each such level once, giving a compact simple closed contour with no equilibrium point on it. The nonzero vector field traverses this contour periodically; the period grows without bound as the separatrix is approached. This supplies an infinite family, not a claim that every level outside the central region is closed.

Restore the small radial perturbation. Its exact effect on the first integral isConsequently the continuum of Hamiltonian system orbits generally does not persist. The origin becomes a weak attracting focus for $\hat{\mu }<0$ or a repelling focus for $\hat{\mu }>0$, and the three hyperbolic saddle equilibria persist with perturbed stable manifold and unstable manifold. For a small positive $\hat{\mu }$, outward drift on very small orbits balances cubic damping on somewhat larger ones, selecting a stable limit cycle rather than an arbitrary energy level. Near the center equilibrium $H\simeq r^2$, so its leading radius is $r\simeq \sqrt{\hat{\mu }}$ when $\hat{\mu }$ is also small.

For a more general closed unperturbed orbit ${\Gamma }_h$, the averaged area criterion for perturbed Hamiltonian cycles says that persistence requires the averaged energy drift ${\oint }_{{\Gamma }_h}{H}_{\tau }d\tau$ to vanish. Since the unperturbed speed is $|\nabla H|/2$, the planar divergence theorem converts this leading drift towhere ${\mathcal{D}}_h$ is the enclosed region. Isolated zeros select candidate periodic orbits; a drift changing from positive inside to negative outside gives an attracting limit cycle. The separatrix triangle has mean $r^2=1/4$, so its leading flux changes sign at $\hat{\mu }=1/2$. This marks the leading possible heteroclinic transition, with higher-order corrections needed to locate it precisely.

As a cycle approaches the saddle equilibria, long residence times and splitting of the heteroclinic cycle become important. Orbits can instead drift inward to the equilibrium point at the origin or leave the periodic island and approach one of the stable states with phase locking of the full canonical equation. Those upper-branch threefold phase-locked equilibria have $C=O(1)$, so they lie outside the local $C=O(\omega )$ scaling. Thus the small perturbation gives energy selection, attracting or repelling oscillations, and possible switching/locking transitions; it does not preserve a conserved $H$ or an infinite family of neutral periodic solutions. This qualitative picture does not assume all global parameter values have the same attractor.

To find the threefold phase-locked equilibria, write $C=R{e}^{i\theta }$ with $R>0$; separating real and imaginary parts givesA steady state satisfiessoWriting $y=R_0^2$ and $D=1+4\mu -4{\omega }^2$, the amplitude branches areThere are two distinct positive roots for $\mu >{\omega }^2-1/4$, except at $(\mu ,\omega )=(0,0)$, where $y_{-}=0$ and only the upper root is nonzero. Indeed their sum is positive in this range and their product is ${\mu }^2+{\omega }^2$. Below the fold condition there are none. At equality, there is one positive repeated root $y={\omega }^2+1/4$, the saddle-node bifurcation limit.

For each positive amplitude, the sine and cosine determine $3{\theta }_0$ modulo $2\pi$, giving three phases separated by $2\pi /3$. Thus the source's “two states” means two amplitude branches modulo the threefold spatial symmetry. Generically there are six nonzero complex equilibria, three on each branch, not literally two.

The polar Jacobian matrix at an equilibrium isOn the lower branch, $\det J=-3y_{-}\sqrt{D}<0$, so it is a saddle equilibrium and unstable. On the upper branch, $\det J=3y_{+}\sqrt{D}>0$ andbecause existence implies $\mu >-1/4$. Therefore every upper-branch equilibrium is asymptotically stable, and every lower-branch equilibrium is a saddle equilibrium, away from the degenerate endpoints. The eigenvalues are unchanged by the smooth polar coordinate transformation at $R_0>0$. The origin, not covered by those coordinates, has eigenvalues $\mu \pm i\omega$ and is stable for $\mu <0$ and unstable for $\mu >0$.