  Recent experiments on nano-resonators in a bistable regime use the
`jump-down' point between states to infer mechanical properties of the membrane
or a load, but often suggest the presence of some nonlinear damping. Motivated
by such experiments, we develop a mechanical model of a membrane subject to a
uniform, oscillatory load and linear damping. We solve this model numerically
and compare its jump-down behaviour with standard asymptotic predictions for a
one-dimensional Duffing oscillator with strain stiffening. We show that the
axisymmetric, but spatially-varying, problem can be mapped to the Duffing
problem with coefficients determined rationally from the model's Partial
Differential Equations. However, we also show that jump-down happens earlier
than expected (i.e.~at lower frequency, and with a smaller oscillation
amplitude). Although this premature jump-down is often interpreted as the
signature of a nonlinear damping in experiments, its appearance in numerical
simulations with only linear damping suggests instead that indicate that the
limitations of asymptotic results may, at least sometimes, be the cause. We
therefore suggest that care should be exercised in interpreting the results of
nano-resonator experiments.
