Manuela A. D. Aguiar

Dynamics near a heteroclinic network

We study the dynamical behaviour of a smooth vector field on a three-manifold near a heteroclinic network. Under some generic assumptions on the network, we prove that every path on the network is followed by a neighbouring trajectory of the vector field—there is switching on the network. We also show that near the network there is an infinite number of hyperbolic suspended horseshoes. This leads to the existence of a horseshoe of suspended horseshoes with the shape of the network.Our results are motivated by an example constructed by Field (1996 Lectures on Bifurcations, Dynamics, and Symmetry (Pitman Research Notes in Mathematics Series vol 356) (Harlow: Longman)), where we have observed, numerically, the existence of such a network.

Switching near a network of rotating nodes

We study the dynamics of a Z 2 ⊕ Z 2-equivariant vector field in the neighbourhood of a heteroclinic network with a periodic trajectory and symmetric equilibria. We assume that around each equilibrium the linearization of the vector field has non-real eigenvalues. Trajectories starting near each node of the network turn around in space either following the periodic trajectory or due to the complex eigenvalues near the equilibria. Thus, in a network with rotating nodes, the rotations combine with transverse intersections of two-dimensional invariant manifolds to create switching near the network; close to the network, there are trajectories that visit neighbourhoods of the saddles following all the heteroclinic connections of the network in any given order. Our results are motivated by an example where switching was observed numerically by forced symmetry breaking of an asymptotically stable network with O(2) symmetry.

The Lattice of Synchrony Subspaces of a Coupled Cell Network: Characterization and Computation Algorithm

Coupled cell systems are networks of dynamical systems (the cells), where the links between the cells are described through the network structure, the coupled cell network. Synchrony subspaces are spaces defined in terms of equalities of certain cell coordinates that are flow-invariant for all coupled cell systems associated with a given network structure. The intersection of synchrony subspaces of a network is also a synchrony subspace of the network. It follows, then, that, given a coupled cell network, its set of synchrony subspaces, taking the inclusion partial order relation, forms a lattice. In this paper we show how to obtain the lattice of synchrony subspaces for a general network and present an algorithm that generates that lattice. We prove that this problem is reduced to obtain the lattice of synchrony subspaces for regular networks. For a regular network we obtain the lattice of synchrony subspaces based on the eigenvalue structure of the network adjacency matrix.

Chaotic double cycling

We study the dynamics of a generic vector field in the neighbourhood of a heteroclinic cycle of non-trivial periodic solutions whose invariant manifolds meet transversely. The main result is the existence of chaotic double cycling: there are trajectories that follow the cycle making any prescribed number of turns near the periodic solutions, for any given bi-infinite sequence of turns. Using symbolic dynamics, arbitrarily close to the cycle, we find a robust and transitive set of initial conditions whose trajectories follow the cycle for all time and that is conjugate to a Markov shift over a finite alphabet. This conjugacy allows us to prove the existence of infinitely many heteroclinic and homoclinic subsidiary connections, which give rise to a heteroclinic network with infinitely many cycles and chaotic dynamics near them, exhibiting themselves switching and cycling. We construct an example of a vector field with Z 3 symmetry in a five-dimensional sphere with a heteroclinic cycle having this property.

SIMPLE VECTOR FIELDS WITH COMPLEX BEHAVIOR

We construct examples of vector fields on a three-sphere, amenable to analytic proof of properties that guarantee the existence of complex behavior. The examples are restrictions of symmetric polynomial vector fields in R4 and possess heteroclinic networks producing switching and nearby suspended horseshoes. The heteroclinic networks in our examples are persistent under symmetry preserving perturbations. We prove that some of the connections in the networks are the transverse intersection of invariant manifolds. The remaining connections are symmetry-induced. The networks lie in an invariant three-sphere and may involve connections exclusively between equilibria or between equilibria and periodic trajectories. The same construction technique may be applied to obtain other examples with similar features.

Minimal coupled cell networks

It is known that non-isomorphic coupled cell networks can have equivalent dynamics. Such networks are said to be ODE-equivalent and are related by a linear algebra condition involving their graph adjacency matrices. A network in an ODE-equivalence class is said to be minimal if it has a minimum number of edges. When studying a given network in an ODE-class it can be of great value to study instead a minimal network in that class. Here we characterize the minimal networks of an ODE-equivalence class—the canonical normal forms of the ODE-class. Moreover, we present an algorithm that computes the canonical normal forms for a given ODE-class. This goes through the calculation of vectors with minimum length contained in a cone of a lattice described in terms of the adjacency matrices of any network in the ODE-class.

Evolution of synchrony under combination of coupled cell networks

A natural way of modelling large coupled cell networks is to combine smaller networks through binary network operations. In this paper, we consider several non-product binary operations on networks such as join and coalescence, and examine the evolution of the lattice of synchrony subspaces under these operations. Classification results are obtained for synchrony subspaces of the combined network, which clarify the relation between the lattice of synchrony subspaces of the combined network and its components. Yet, in the case when the initial networks have the same edge type, this classification only applies to those synchrony subspaces that are compatible with respect to the considered operation. Based on the classification results, we give examples to show how the lattice of synchrony subspaces of the combined network can be reconstructed using the initial ones. Also, we show how the classification results can be applied to analyse the evolutionary fitness of synchrony patterns.

Regular synchrony lattices for product coupled cell networks

There are several ways for constructing (bigger) networks from smaller networks. We consider here the cartesian and the Kronecker (tensor) product networks. Our main aim is to determine a relation between the lattices of synchrony subspaces for a product network and the component networks of the product. In this sense, we show how to obtain the lattice of regular synchrony subspaces for a product network from the lattices of synchrony subspaces for the component networks. Specifically, we prove that a tensor of subspaces is of synchrony for the product network if and only if the subspaces involved in the tensor are synchrony subspaces for the component networks of the product. We also show that, in general, there are (irregular) synchrony subspaces for the product network that are not described by the synchrony subspaces for the component networks, concluding that, in general, it is not possible to obtain the all synchrony lattice for the product network from the corresponding lattices for the component networks. We also make the following remark concerning the fact that the cartesian and Kronecker products, as graph operations, are quite different, implying that the associated coupled cell systems have distinct structures. Although, the kinds of dynamics expected to occur are difficult to compare, we establish an inclusion relation between the lattices of synchrony subspaces for the cartesian and Kronecker products.

Interior Symmetries and Multiple Eigenvalues for Homogeneous Networks

We analyze the impact of interior symmetries on the multiplicity of the eigenvalues of the Jacobian matrix at a fully synchronous equilibrium for the coupled cell systems associated to homogeneous networks. We consider also the special cases of regular and uniform networks. It follows from our results that the interior symmetries, as well as the reverse interior symmetries and quotient interior symmetries, of the network force the existence of eigenvalues with algebraic multiplicity greater than one. The proofs are based on the special form of the adjacency matrices of the networks induced by these interior symmetries.

Synchrony and Elementary Operations on Coupled Cell Networks

Given a finite graph (network), let every node (cell) represent an individual dynamics given by a system of ordinary differential equations, and every arrow (edge) encode the dynamical influence of the tail node on the head node. We have then defined a coupled cell system that is associated with the given network structure. Subspaces that are defined by equalities of cell coordinates and left invariant under every coupled cell system respecting the network structure are called synchrony subspaces. They are completely determined by the network structure and form a complete lattice under set inclusions. We analyze the transition of the lattice of synchrony subspaces of a network that is caused by structural changes in the network topology, such as deletion and addition of cells or edges, and rewirings of edges. We give sufficient, and in some cases both sufficient and necessary, conditions under which lattice elements persist or disappear.