Onsets of avalanches in the BTW model

TL;DR

This paper investigates the initiation times of avalanches and dissipation events in the BTW model through simulations, revealing power law relationships with system size and rapid height fluctuations near the critical point.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the scaling behavior and fluctuation dynamics of avalanche onsets in the BTW model.

Findings

Power law dependence of avalanche and dissipation onsets on system size

Rapid increase in height fluctuations near the SOC point

Estimated exponents for the onset times' scaling

Abstract

The onsets of toppling and dissipation in the BTW model are studied by computer simulation. The distributions of these two onset times and their dependences on the system size are also studied. Simple power law dependences of these two times on the system size are observed and the exponents are estimated. The fluctuation of the average (spatial) height in the subcritical region is studied and observed to increase very rapidly near the SOC point.