Self-organizing Chimera States in Adaptive Networks

Abstract

We propose a minimal adaptive network model with product-form coupling that reduces dimensionality while capturing key features of synaptic plasticity. The system spontaneously self-organizes into adaptive chimera states, where identical oscillators separate into synchronized and desynchronized groups through adaptive weight dynamics. These adaptive chimeras organize into branches with fixed coherent cluster fraction and exhibit transitions between stationary, breathing, and chaotic collective dynamics, revealing a collective bifurcation structure. Crucially, the resulting attractor landscape is highly multistable: repeated cluster reorganizations generate distinct dynamical pathways that coexist within the same parameter regime and depend sensitively on initial conditions.