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  • Open Access

Designing topological cluster synchronization patterns with the Dirac operator

Ahmed A. A. Zaid* and Ginestra Bianconi†

  • *Contact author: a.a.a.zaid@qmul.ac.uk
  • †Contact author: ginestra.bianconi@gmail.com
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Phys. Rev. E 113, 014317 – Published 28 January, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/v65b-3jx7

Abstract

Designing stable cluster synchronization patterns is a fundamental challenge in nonlinear dynamics of networks with great relevance to understanding neuronal and brain dynamics. So far, cluster synchronization has been studied exclusively in a node-based dynamical approach, according to which oscillators are associated only with the nodes of the network. Here we propose a topological synchronization dynamics model based on the use of the topological Dirac operator, which allows us to design cluster synchronization patterns for topological oscillators associated with both nodes and edges of a network. In particular, by modulating the ground state of the free energy associated with the dynamical model, we construct topological cluster synchronization patterns. These are aligned with the eigenstates of the topological Dirac equation that provide a very useful decomposition of the dynamical state of node and edge signals associated with the network. We use linear stability analysis to predict the stability of the topological cluster synchronization patterns and provide numerical evidence of the ability to design several stable topological cluster synchronization states on real connectome data, random graphs, and on stochastic block models.

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Phys. Rev. E 113, 014317– Published 28 January, 2026
  • Received 28 July 2025
  • Revised 5 November 2025
  • Accepted 2 January 2026
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