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Elliptic Bubbles in Moser's 4D Quadratic Map: the Quadfurcation

Moser derived a normal form for the family of four-dimensional, quadratic, symplectic maps in 1994. This six-parameter family generalizes Hénon's ubiquitous 2D map and provides a local approximation for the dynamics of more general 4D maps. We show that the bounded dynamics of Moser's family is organized by a codimension-three bifurcation that creates four fixed points---a bifurcation analogous to a doubled, saddle-center---which we call a quadfurcation. In some sectors of parameter space a quadfurcation creates four fixed points from none, and in others it is the collision of a pair of fixed points that re-emerge as two or possibly four. In the simplest case the dynamics is similar to the cross product of a pair of Hénon maps, but more typically the stability of the created fixed points does not have this simple form. Up to two of the fixed points can be doubly-elliptic and be surrounded by bubbles of invariant two-tori; these dominate the set of bounded orbits. The quadfurcation can also create one or two complex-unstable (Krein) fixed points. Special cases of the quadfurcation correspond to a pair of weakly coupled Hénon maps near their saddle-center bifurcations. The quadfurcation also occurs in the creation of accelerator modes in a 4D standard map.