Self-organized criticality and synchronization in a lattice model of integrate-and-fire oscillators

Abstract

We introduce two coupled map lattice models with nonconservative interactions and a continuous nonlinear driving. Depending on both the degree of conservation and the convexity of the driving we find different behaviors, ranging from self-organized criticality, in the sense that the distribution of events (avalanches) obeys a power law, to a macroscopic synchronization of the population of oscillators, with avalanches of the size of the system.

4 pages, Revtex 3.0, 3 PostScript figures available upon request to albert@ulyses.ffn.ub.es