Towards computational Morse-Floer homology: forcing results for connecting orbits by computing relative indices of critical points

To make progress towards better computability of Morse-Floer homology, and thus enhance the applicability of Floer theory, it is essential to have tools to determine the relative index of equilibria. Since even the existence of nontrivial stationary points is often difficult to accomplish, extracting their index information is usually out of reach. In this paper we establish a computer-assisted proof approach to determining relative indices of stationary states. We introduce the general framework and then focus on three example problems described by partial differential equations to show how these ideas work in practice. Based on a rigorous implementation, with accompanying code made available, we determine the relative indices of many stationary points. Moreover, we show how forcing results can be then used to prove theorems about connecting orbits and traveling waves in partial differential equations.