Noise-induced dynamical regimes in a system of globally coupled excitable units

Abstract

We study the interplay of global attractive coupling and individual noise in a system of identical active rotators in the excitable regime. Performing a numerical bifurcation analysis of the nonlocal nonlinear Fokker-Planck equation for the thermodynamic limit, we identify a complex bifurcation scenario with regions of different dynamical regimes, including collective oscillations and coexistence of states with different levels of activity. In systems of finite size this leads to additional dynamical features, such as collective excitability of different types, noise-induced switching and bursting. Moreover, we show how characteristic quantities such as macroscopic and microscopic variability of inter spike intervals can depend in a non-monotonous way on the noise level.