No Arabic abstract
The analysis on stability and bifurcations in the macroscopic dynamics exhibited by the system of two coupled large populations comprised of $N$ stochastic excitable units each is performed by studying an approximate system, obtained by replacing each population with the corresponding mean-field model. In the exact system, one has the units within an ensemble communicating via the time-delayed linear couplings, whereas the inter-ensemble terms involve the nonlinear time-delayed interaction mediated by the appropriate global variables. The aim is to demonstrate that the bifurcations affecting the stability of the stationary state of the original system, governed by a set of 4N stochastic delay-differential equations for the microscopic dynamics, can accurately be reproduced by a flow containing just four deterministic delay-differential equations which describe the evolution of the mean-field based variables. In particular, the considered issues include determining the parameter domains where the stationary state is stable, the scenarios for the onset and the time-delay induced suppression of the collective mode, as well as the parameter domains admitting bistability between the equilibrium and the oscillatory state. We show how analytically tractable bifurcations occurring in the approximate model can be used to identify the characteristic mechanisms by which the stationary state is destabilized under different system configurations, like those with symmetrical or asymmetrical inter-population couplings.
We consider the approximations behind the typical mean-field model derived for a class of systems made up of type II excitable units influenced by noise and coupling delays. The formulation of the two approximations, referred to as the Gaussian and the quasi-independence approximation, as well as the fashion in which their validity is verified, are adapted to reflect the essential properties of the underlying system. It is demonstrated that the failure of the mean-field model associated with the breakdown of the quasi-independence approximation can be predicted by the noise-induced bistability in the dynamics of the mean-field system. As for the Gaussian approximation, its violation is related to the increase of noise intensity, but the actual condition for failure can be cast in qualitative, rather than quantitative terms. We also discuss how the fulfilment of the mean-field approximations affects the statistics of the first return times for the local and global variables, further exploring the link between the fulfilment of the quasi-independence approximation and certain forms of synchronization between the individual units.
Many studies of synchronization properties of coupled oscillators, based on the classical Kuramoto approach, focus on ensembles coupled via a mean field. Here we introduce a setup of Kuramoto-type phase oscillators coupled via two mean fields. We derive stability properties of the incoherent state and find traveling wave solutions with different locking patterns; stability properties of these waves are found numerically. Mostly nontrivial states appear when the two fields compete, i.e. one tends to synchronize oscillators while the other one desynchronizes them. Here we identify normal branches which bifurcate from the incoherent state in a usual way, and anomalous branches, appearance of which cannot be described as a bifurcation. Furthermore, hybrid branches combining properties of both are described. In the situations where no stable traveling wave exists, modulated quasiperiodic in time dynamics is observed. Our results indicate that a competition between two coupling channels can lead to a complex system behavior, providing a potential generalized framework for understanding of complex phenomena in natural oscillatory systems.
We consider networks formed from two populations of identical oscillators, with uniform strength all-to-all coupling within populations, and also between populations, with a different strength. Such systems are known to support chimera states in which oscillators within one population are perfectly synchronised while in the other the oscillators are incoherent, and have a different mean frequency from those in the synchronous population. Assuming that the oscillators in the incoherent population always lie on a closed smooth curve $mathcal{C}$, we derive and analyse the dynamics of the shape of $mathcal{C}$ and the probability density on $mathcal{C}$, for four different types of oscillators. We put some previously derived results on a rigorous footing, and analyse two new systems.
Low dimensional dynamics of large networks is the focus of many theoretical works, but controlled laboratory experiments are comparatively very few. Here, we discuss experimental observations on a mean-field coupled network of hundreds of semiconductor lasers, which collectively display effectively low-dimensional mixed mode oscillations and chaotic spiking typical of slow-fast systems. We demonstrate that such a reduced dimensionality originates from the slow-fast nature of the system and of the existence of a critical manifold of the network where most of the dynamics takes place. Experimental measurement of the bifurcation parameter for different network sizes corroborate the theory.
Population bursts in a large ensemble of coupled elements result from the interplay between the local excitable properties of the nodes and the global network topology. Here collective excitability and self-sustained bursting oscillations are shown to spontaneously emerge in adaptive networks of globally coupled non-excitable units. The ingredients to observe collective excitability are the coexistence of states with different degree of synchronizaton joined to a global feedback acting, on a slow timescale, against the synchronization (desynchronization) of the oscillators. These regimes are illustrated for two paradigmatic classes of coupled rotators: namely, the Kuramoto model with and without inertia. For the bimodal Kuramoto model we analytically show that the macroscopic evolution originates from the existence of a critical manifold organizing the fast collective dynamics on a slow timescale. Our results provide evidence that adaptation can induce excitability by maintaining a network permanently out-of-equilibrium.