Subcritical Andronov-Hopf scenario for systems with a line of equilibria

Using numerical simulation methods and analytical approaches, we demonstrate hard self-oscillation excitation in systems with infinitely many equilibrium points forming a line of equilibria in the phase space. The studied bifurcation phenomena are equivalent to the excitation scenario via the subcritical Andronov-Hopf bifurcation observed in classical self-oscillators with isolated equilibrium points. The hysteresis and bistability accompanying the discussed processes are shown and explained. The research is carried out on an example of a nonlinear memristor-based self-oscillator model. First, a simpler model including Chua's memristor with a piecewise-smooth characteristic is explored. Then, the memristor characteristic is changed to a function being smooth everywhere. Finally, the action of the memristor forgetting effect is taken into consideration.