Period-3 Motions in a Two Degree-of-Freedom Nonlinear Oscillator

In this paper, periodic motions of a two-degree-of-freedom nonlinear oscillator are studied by using general harmonic balanced method. Stable and unstable period-3 motions are obtained. The corresponding stability and bifurcations of the period-3 motions are determined through the eigenvalue analysis. Both symmetric and asymmetric period-3 motions are found in the system with a certain set of parameter. Numerical simulations of both stable and unstable period-3 motions in the two degrees of freedom systems are illustrated. The harmonic amplitude spectra show the harmonic effects on periodic motions, and the corresponding accuracy of approximate analytical solutions can be observed.