Perfect synchronization in networks of phase-frustrated oscillators

¹ Department of Mathematics, National Institute of Technology - Durgapur 713209, India
² Department of Mathematics, Bar-Ilan University - Ramat-Gan, 52900, Israel

Received: 30 October 2017
Accepted: 14 January 2018

Abstract

Synchronizing phase-frustrated Kuramoto oscillators, a challenge that has found applications from neuronal networks to the power grid, is an eluding problem, as even small phase lags cause the oscillators to avoid synchronization. Here we show, constructively, how to strategically select the optimal frequency set, capturing the natural frequencies of all oscillators, for a given network and phase lags, that will ensure perfect synchronization. We find that high levels of synchronization are sustained in the vicinity of the optimal set, allowing for some level of deviation in the frequencies without significant degradation of synchronization. Demonstrating our results on first- and second-order phase-frustrated Kuramoto dynamics, we implement them on both model and real power grid networks, showing how to achieve synchronization in a phase-frustrated environment.