Nonlinear energy transfer in classical and quantum systems

In this paper we investigate the effect of slowly-varying parameters on the energy transfer in a weakly coupled system. For definiteness, we consider a system of two nonlinear oscillators, in which the directly excited first oscillator with constant parameter is attached to the oscillator with slowly time-varying frequency. It is proved that the equations of the slow passage through resonance in this system are identical to the equations of nonlinear Landau-Zener (LZ) tunneling. Three types of dynamical behavior are distinguished, namely, quasilinear, moderately nonlinear, and strongly nonlinear ones. Quasilinear systems exhibit a gradual energy transfer from the excited to the attached oscillator, while moderately nonlinear systems are characterized by an abrupt transition from the energy localization on the excited oscillator to the localization on the attached oscillator. In strongly nonlinear systems, the transition from the energy localization to strong energy exchange between the oscillators is revealed. Explicit approximate solutions describing the transient processes in moderately and strongly nonlinear systems are suggested. Correctness of the constructed approximations is confirmed by numerical results. The results presented in this paper, in addition to providing an analytical framework for understanding the transient dynamics, suggest an approximate procedure for solving the nonlinear LZ problem with arbitrary initial conditions over a finite time-interval.