Chaos for a class of linear kinetic models

Abstract

In recent years it was observed that chaotic behaviour can occur in some infinite–dimensional linear systems. An example of this type, related to a kinetic model (death process), has been previously reported. In this paper we generalize these earlier results to the case of variable coefficients, showing that the property of being chaotic can be in a certain sense stable. On the other hand the ‘opposite’ birth process cannot be chaotic.