Avalanches, Scaling and Coherent Noise

TL;DR

This paper introduces a simple dynamical model driven by coherent noise that produces avalanches with power-law size distributions, resembling earthquake dynamics and rice pile experiments, without reaching criticality.

Contribution

The study presents a novel model demonstrating how coherent noise can generate scale-invariant avalanches without criticality, linking it to earthquake laws and experimental observations.

Findings

Avalanche size distribution follows a power-law.

The system does not develop long-range spatial correlations.

The model relates to earthquake statistics and rice pile experiments.

Abstract

We present a simple model of a dynamical system driven by externally-imposed coherent noise. Although the system never becomes critical in the sense of possessing spatial correlations of arbitrarily long range, it does organize into a stationary state characterized by avalanches with a power-law size distribution. We explain the behavior of the model within a time-averaged approximation, and discuss its potential connection to the dynamics of earthquakes, the Gutenberg-Richter law, and to recent experiments on avalanches in rice piles.