Phase-locked solutions and their stability in the presence of propagation delays

Abstract

We investigate phase-locked solutions of a continuum field of nonlocally coupled identical phase oscillators with distance-dependent propagation delays. Equilibrium relations for both synchronous and traveling wave solutions in the parameter space characterizing the non-locality and time delay are delineated. For the synchronous states a comprehensive stability diagram is presented that provides a heuristic synchronization condition as well as an analytic relation for the marginal stability curve. The relation yields simple stability expressions in the limiting cases of local and global coupling of the phase oscillators.