COULLET , Pierre

The intermittent route to spatiotemporal complexity is analyzed in simple models which display a subcritical bifurcation without hysteresis. A new type of spatiotemporal complex behavior is found, induced by fronts which "clean" the perturbations around an unstable state. The mechanism which generates these "retracting fronts" through nonlinear...

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We revisit from a modern viewpoint a graphical method of resolution of the Young–Laplace equation proposed by Thomson in 1886 and improved by Boys in 1893. This method, relying on some axisymmetry properties, was applied to the case of pendant drops, drops on a horizontal plane and meniscii. The several initials conditions necessitated a...

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It has recently been emphasized again that the very existence of stationary stable localized structures with short range interactions might allow to store information in non-equilibrium media, opening new perspectives on information storage. We show how to use generalized topological entropies to measure aspects of the quantities of storable...

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In this paper we describe how to use the bifurcation structure of static localized solutions in one dimension to store information on a medium in such a way that no extrinsic grid is needed to locate the information. We demonstrate that these principles, deduced from the mathematics adapted to describe one-dimensional media, also allow one to...

As stated by Lord Kelvin a long time ago, 'It seems to me that the test of "Do we or do we not understand a particular point in physics?" is, "Can we make a mechanical model of it?"' What is the relationship between the propagation of a light wave in a Kerr medium in the presence of a magnetic field and the oscillation of a spherical pendulum...

What is the relationship between the propagation of a light wave in a Kerr medium in the presence of a magnetic field and the oscillation of a spherical pendulum on a rotating platform? We apply the general formalism of amplitude equations in order to explore both the nonlinear and the rotation-induced precession of these optical and mechanical...

The dynamics of a damped pendulum driven by a constant torque is studied experimentally and theoretically. We use this simple device to demonstrate some generic dynamical behavior including the loss of equilibrium or saddle node bifurcation with or without hysteresis and the homoclinic bifurcation. A qualitative analysis is developed to...

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Robert Hooke is perhaps one of the first scientists to have met chaotic motions. Indeed, to invert a cone and let a ball move in it was a mechanical model used by him to mimic the motion of a planet around a centre of force like the Sun. However, as the cone is inclined with respect to the gravity field, the perfect rosace followed by the...

International audience