Chaos from linear-growth-rate heterogeneity without nonlinear frequency shifts

Determine whether linear-growth-rate heterogeneity can generate chaos in coupled Stuart–Landau oscillators without dependence on a nonlinear frequency shift.

Background

The paper studies globally coupled Stuart–Landau oscillators with identical natural frequencies and no Kerr-type nonlinear frequency shift. It demonstrates numerically that heterogeneous linear growth rates combined with complex global coupling can produce quasiperiodicity and chaos in a finite population.

The authors contrast this mechanism with previously studied routes to complex dynamics involving natural-frequency heterogeneity or nonlinear frequency shifts. They explicitly identify the unresolved issue of whether linear-growth-rate heterogeneity alone, when combined with complex coupling, is sufficient to generate chaos without Kerr-type nonlinearities.