Dynamics of systems with distributed delays

Yuliya Kyrychko, University of Sussex. Part of the Leeds Applied Nonlinear Dynamics seminar series.

Many physical, biological and engineering processes can be represented mathematically by models of coupled systems with time delays. Time delays in such systems are often either hard to measure accurately, or they are changing over time, so it is more realistic to take time delays from a particular distribution rather than to assume them to be constant. In this talk, I will show how distributed time delays affect the stability of solutions in systems of coupled oscillators. Furthermore, I will present a system with distributed delays and Gaussian noise, and illustrate how to calculate the optimal path to escape from the basin of attraction of the stable steady state, as well as how the distribution of time delays influences the rate of escape away from the stable steady state. Throughout the talk, analytical calculations will be supported by numerical simulations to illustrate possible dynamical regimes and processes.