Normal-form approach to spatiotemporal pattern formation in globally coupled electrochemical systems

We show that the experimental global coupling (GC) of spatially extended electrochemical oscillators is weak close to a supercritical Hopf bifurcation. A center manifold reduction allows then the normal form which comprises the GC and the naturally existing nonlocal (migration) coupling (NLC) to be derived. We show that the interaction between NLC and GC widens the spectrum of coherent structures found in globally coupled oscillatory media and allows for wavelength selection of standing waves, stabilization of phase clusters without breaking phase invariance, and creation of heteroclinic networks connecting families of oscillatory states characterized by different spatial symmetries.