Numerical studies of the standard nontwist map and a renormalization group framework for breakup of invariant tori

This thesis presents numerical explorations of area-preserving nontwist maps, and a renormalization group framework for the destruction of invariant tori. We study the phenomena of bifurcation and reconnection, and the emergence of meandering tori which are non-KAM invariant curves. We also study the breakup of shearless invariant tori with noble winding numbers using improved numerical techniques to implement Greene’s residue criterion. We interpret the breakup of invariant tori within a renormalization group framework by constructing renormalization group operators for the tori with winding numbers that are quadratic irrationals. We find the simple fixed points of these operators and interpret the map pairs with critical invariant tori as critical fixed points. We introduce coordinate transformations on the space of maps to relate these fixed points to each other. These transformations induce conjugacies between the corresponding operators, and provide a new perspective on the space of area-preserving maps.