Nonlinear Wave Structures, Multistability, and Chaotic Behavior of Quantum Dust-Acoustic Shocks in Dusty Plasma with Size Distribution Effects

This paper presents a detailed study of the ( 3 + 1 ) -dimensional Zakharov–Kuznetsov–Burgers equation to investigate shock-wave phenomena in dusty plasmas with quantum effects. The model provides significant physical insight into nonlinear dispersive and dissipative structures arising in charged-dust–ion environments, corresponding to both laboratory and astrophysical plasmas. We then perform a qualitative, numerically assisted dynamical analysis using bifurcation diagrams, multistability checks, return maps, Poincaré sections, and phase portraits. For both the unperturbed and a perturbed system, we identify chaotic, quasi-periodic, and periodic regimes from these numerical diagnostics; accordingly, our dynamical conclusions are qualitative. We also examine frequency-response and time-delay sensitivity, providing a qualitative classification of nonlinear behavior across a broad parameter range. After establishing the global dynamical picture, traveling-wave solutions are obtained using the Paul–Painlevé approach. These solutions represent shock and solitary structures in the plasma system, thereby bridging the analytical and dynamical perspectives. The significance of this study lies in combining a detailed dynamical framework with exact traveling-wave solutions, allowing a deeper understanding of nonlinear shock dynamics in quantum dusty plasmas. These results not only advance theoretical plasma modeling but also hold potential applications in plasma-based devices, wave propagation in optical fibers, and astrophysical plasma environments.