Periodic lattices of chaotic defects

A type of lattice in which chaotic defects are arranged periodically is reported for a coupled map model of open flow. We find that temporally chaotic defects are followed by spatial relaxation to an almost periodic state, when suddenly another defect appears. The distance between successive defects is found to be generally predetermined and diverging logarithmically when approaching a certain critical point. The phenomena are analyzed and shown to be explicable as the results of a boundary crisis for the spatially extended system.