Reaction-diffusion on random spatial networks with scale-free jumping rates via effective medium theory

Abstract

We study epidemic processes using a metapopulation approach on the line featuring random transport rates between arbitrarily distant sites. An average transport network is found using a recently developed variant of the effective medium approximation (EMA) that is capable of dealing with these long-range connections. Using a Feynman-Kac argument in the effective medium, we derive an estimate on the size of the infected domain, and reproduce the known result of its exponential growth in time. We hereby demonstrate the applicability of long-range EMA to dynamical processes on networks more intricate than simple diffusion.