Abstract and Applied Analysis
Volume 2009 (2009), Article ID 484158, 7 pages
doi:10.1155/2009/484158
Research Article

Asymptotic Dichotomy in a Class of Fourth-Order Nonlinear Delay Differential Equations with Damping

Chengmin Hou1 and Sui Sun Cheng2

1Department of Mathematics, Yanbian University, Yanji 133002, China
2Department of Mathematics, Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30043, Taiwan

Received 5 December 2008; Revised 15 February 2009; Accepted 26 February 2009

Academic Editor: Agacik Zafer

Copyright © 2009 Chengmin Hou and Sui Sun Cheng. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

All solutions of a fourth-order nonlinear delay differential equation are shown to converge to zero or to oscillate. Novel Riccati type techniques involving third-order linear differential equations are employed. Implications in the deflection of elastic horizontal beams are also indicated.