The 16th Hilbert problem on algebraic limit cycles

Abstract

For real planar polynomial differential systems there appeared a simple version of the 16th Hilbert problem on algebraic limit cycles: Is there an upper bound on the number of algebraic limit cycles of all polynomial vector fields of degree m? In [J. Llibre, R. Ramírez, N. Sadovskaia, On the 16th Hilbert problem for algebraic limit cycles, J. Differential Equations 248 (2010) 1401–1409] Llibre, Ramírez and Sadovskaia solved the problem, providing an exact upper bound, in the case of invariant algebraic curves generic for the vector fields, and they posed the following conjecture: Is 1 + ( m − 1 ) ( m − 2 ) / 2 the maximal number of algebraic limit cycles that a polynomial vector field of degree m can have? In this paper we will prove this conjecture for planar polynomial vector fields having only nodal invariant algebraic curves. This result includes the Llibre et al.ʼs as a special one. For the polynomial vector fields having only non-dicritical invariant algebraic curves we answer the simple version of the 16th Hilbert problem.