Shil'nikov chaos and mixed-mode oscillation in Chua circuit.

We report experimental observations of Shil'nikov-type homoclinic chaos and mixed-mode oscillations in asymmetry-induced Chua's oscillator. The asymmetry plays a crucial role in the related homoclinic bifurcation. The asymmetry is introduced in the Chua circuit by forcing a dc voltage. Then by tuning a control parameter, we observed transition from large amplitude limit cycle to homoclinic chaos via a sequence of mixed-mode oscillations interspersed by chaotic states. We provide experimental evidences that the asymmetry effect can also be induced in the oscillatory Chua circuit when it is coupled with another one in a rest state. The coupling strength then controls the strength of asymmetry and thereby reproduces all the features of Shil'nikov chaos.