Two-dimensional iterated morphisms and discrete planes

Abstract

Iterated morphisms of the free monoid are very simple combinatorial objects which produce infinite sequences by replacing iteratively letters by words. The aim of this paper is to introduce a formalism for a notion of two-dimensional morphisms; we show that they can be iterated by using local rules, and that they generate two-dimensional patterns related to discrete approximations of irrational planes with algebraic parameters. We associate such a two-dimensional morphism with any usual Pisot unimodular one-dimensional iterated morphism over a three-letter alphabet.