A Simple Differential Equation Example
(Section 1.1)
Nicholas Moore, PhD
1 A Simple ODE
Let’s take the simple ODE
x ′ (t) = ax (t) (1)
We can see by inspection that x (t) = ke at
is a solution to the ODE since = x ′ (t) ake at
= ax (t). Watch the
following video to see how we can confirm that these solutions are the only solutions, thereby making the
solution family the general solution to the ODE.
Video
P ROOF THAT S OLUTION FAMILY ARE O NLY S OLUTIONS
2 Equilibrium Points
Notice that when x ′ (t) = 0, the solution will remain constant for all t thereafter (since x ′ (t) = 0 implies there
is no change in x).
In the example ODE (1) above, the solution x (t) = 0 (when k = 0) is one such scenario. A constant solution
like this is called an equilibrium solution or equilibrium point. These are among the most important solutions
of differential equations. . .
Notice that the variable a is a paramters of the ODE, changing the parameter changes the ODE and therefore
can change the behavior of the solutions. In the most trivial case, if a = 0, then the ODE becomes x ′ (t) = 0
and therefore all solutions are constant solutions and all solutions are equilibrium points. Watch the following
videos discussing the difference behaviors that we observe based on other values of the a parameter.
Video
P OSITIVE a B EHAVIOR
Video
N EGATIVE a B EHAVIOR
Notice that a = 0 is the point where the behavior changes:
• When a > 0, we have a single source
• When a = 0, all solutions are equilibrium points (not sources or sinks)
1
• When a < 0, we have a single sink
The point a = 0 is called a bifurcation points, which is a topics we’ll discuss in more detail later.
Now that we have discussed a simple example, we will discuss a slightly more complicated example in the
next section.