MATCONT

MatCont is a MATLAB-based software package for numerical continuation and bifurcation analysis of dynamical systems. It enables researchers to track how equilibria and periodic solutions change as parameters vary and to map bifurcation structures in parameter space.

Its core functionality includes continuation of equilibria and periodic orbits, stability analysis via eigenvalues, and automatic detection of standard local bifurcations such as folds, Hopf bifurcations, and period-doubling points. It can compute local normal form coefficients to aid bifurcation classification and can handle connecting orbits between invariant sets.

MatCont accepts user-defined dynamical systems in MATLAB, with equations f(x,p) and parameter vector p. It provides a graphical user interface and scripting options, and outputs bifurcation diagrams, branch data, and plots of solution trajectories. The tool is designed for imperative use in research and teaching and is widely used in applied mathematics, physics, and engineering to study nonlinear dynamics.

MatCont is freely available for MATLAB users and runs on standard MATLAB installations. It relies on MATLAB's numerical routines and provides documentation and examples to help new users.