A New Transition between Discrete and Continuous Self-Similarity in Critical Gravitational Collapse

We analyze a bifurcation phenomenon associated with critical gravitational collapse in a family of self-gravitating SU(2) $\sigma$-models. As the dimensionless coupling constant decreases, the critical solution changes from discretely self-similar (DSS) to continuously self-similar (CSS). Numerical results provide evidence for a bifurcation which is analogous to a heteroclinic loop bifurcation in dynamical systems, where two fixed points (CSS) collide with a limit cycle (DSS) in phase space as the coupling constant tends to a critical value.