Degeneration of quadratic polynomial endomorphisms to a H\'enon map

Abstract

For an algebraic family $(f_t)$ of regular quadratic polynomial endomorphisms of $\mathbb{C}^2$ parametrized by $\mathbb{D}^*$ and degenerating to a H\'enon map at $t=0$, we study the continuous (and indeed harmonic) extendibility across $t=0$ of a potential of the bifurcation current on $\mathbb{D}^*$ with the explicit computation of the non-archimedean Lyapunov exponent associated to $(f_t)$. The individual Lyapunov exponents of $f_t$ are also investigated near $t=0$. Using $(f_t)$, we also see that any H\'enon map is accumulated by the bifurcation locus in the space of quadratic holomorphic endomorphisms of $\mathbb {P}^2$.