Emergent synchrony in locally coupled neural oscillators

Abstract

The discovery of long range synchronous oscillations in the visual cortex has triggered much interest in understanding the underlying neural mechanisms and in exploring possible applications of neural oscillations. Many neural models thus proposed end up relying on global connections, leading to the question of whether lateral connections alone can produce remote synchronization. With a formulation different from frequently used phase models, we find that locally coupled neural oscillators can yield global synchrony. The model employs a previously suggested mechanism that the efficacy of the connections is allowed to change on a fast time scale. Based on the known connectivity of the visual cortex, the model outputs closely resemble the experimental findings. Furthermore, we illustrate the potential of locally connected oscillator networks in perceptual grouping and pattern segmentation, which seems missing in globally connected ones.