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Synchronization of neurons forming a network with a hierarchical structure is essential for the brain to be able to function optimally. In this paper we study synchronization of phase oscillators on the most basic example of such a network, namely, the hierarchical lattice. Each site of the lattice carries an oscillator that is subject to noise. Pairs of oscillators interact with each other at a strength that depends on their hierarchical distance, modulated by a sequence of interaction parameters. We look at block averages of the oscillators on successive hierarchical scales, which we think of as block communities. In the limit as the number of oscillators per community tends to infinity, referred to as the hierarchical mean-field limit, we find a separation of time scales, i.e., each block community behaves like a single oscillator evolving on its own time scale. We argue that the evolution of the block communities is given by a renormalized mean-field noisy Kuramoto equation, with a synchronization level that depends on the hierarchical scale of the block community. We find three universality classes for the synchronization levels on successive hierarchical scales, characterized in terms of the sequence of interaction parameters. What makes our model specifically challenging is the non-linearity of the interaction between the oscillators. The main results of our paper therefore come in three parts: (I) a conjecture about the nature of the renormalisation transformation connecting successive hierarchical scales; (II) a truncation approximation that leads to a simplified renormalization transformation; (III) a rigorous analysis of the simplified renormalization transformation. We provide compelling arguments in support of (I) and (II), but a full verification remains an open problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider rings of coupled phase oscillators with anisotropic coupling. When the coupling is skew-symmetric, i.e., when the anisotropy is balanced in a specific way, the system shows robustly a coexistence of Hamiltonian-like and dissipative dynamics in the phase space. We relate this phenomenon to the time-reversibility of the system. The geometry of low-dimensional systems up to five oscillators is described in detail. In particular, we show that the boundary between the dissipative and Hamiltonian-like regions consists of families of heteroclinic connections. For larger rings with skew-symmetric coupling, some suffcient conditions for the coexistence are provided, and in the limit of N → ∞ oscillators, we formally derive an amplitude equation for solutions in the neighborhood of the synchronous solution. It has the form of a nonlinear Schrödinger equation and describes the Hamiltonian-like region existing around the synchronous state similarly to the case of finite rings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The notion of a weak chimeras provides a tractable definition for chimera states in networks of finitely many phase oscillators. Here, we generalize the definition of a weak chimera to a more general class of equivariant dynamical systems by characterizing solutions in terms of the isotropy of their angular frequency vector-for coupled phase oscillators the angular frequency vector is given by the average of the vector field along a trajectory. Symmetries of solutions automatically imply angular frequency synchronization. We show that the presence of such symmetries is not necessary by giving a result for the existence of weak chimeras without instantaneous or setwise symmetries for coupled phase oscillators. Moreover, we construct a coupling function that gives rise to chaotic weak chimeras without symmetry in weakly coupled populations of phase oscillators with generalized coupling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the transition to phase and frequency synchronization in a one-dimensional chain of phase oscillator “cells” where the coupling is mediated by the local concentration of a chemical which can diffuse in the inter-oscillator medium and it is both secreted and absorbed by the oscillator “cells”, influencing their dynamical behavior. This coupling has the advantage of having a tunable parameter which makes it possible to pass continuously from a global (all-to-all) to a local (nearest-neighbor) coupling form. We have verified that synchronous behavior depends on the coupling strength and coupling length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cockroaches are remarkably stable runners, exhibiting rapid recovery from external perturbations. To uncover the mechanisms behind this important behavioral trait, we recorded leg kinematics of freely running animals in both undisturbed and perturbed trials. Functional coupling underlying inter-leg coordination was monitored before and during localized perturbations, which were applied to single legs via magnetic impulses. The resulting transient effects on all legs and the recovery times to normal pre-perturbation kinematics were studied. We estimated coupling architecture and strength by fitting experimental data to a six-leg-unit phase oscillator model. Using maximum-likelihood techniques, we found that a network with nearest-neighbor inter-leg coupling best fitted the data and that, although coupling strengths vary among preparations, the overall inputs entering each leg are approximately balanced and consistent. Simulations of models with different coupling strengths encountering perturbations suggest that the coupling schemes estimated from our experiments allow animals relatively fast and uniform recoveries from perturbations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]