Chimera States in Neuro-Inspired Area-Efficient Asynchronous Cellular Automata Networks

Synchronization transition in neuromorphic networks has attracted much attention recently as a fundamental property of biological neural networks, which relies on network connectivity along with different synaptic features. In this work, an area-optimized FPGA implementation of an Asynchronous Cellular Automata Neuron model that exhibits discrete-state neuron dynamics is introduced. The proposed neuron model is capable of reproducing various neuromorphic oscillations observed in biological neurons using less hardware resources than previous implementations. We investigate synchronization transitions with a focus on the emergence of chimera states in a ring-based network consisting of hardware-based neurons with electrical synaptic coupling. In particular, we study the effects on the network’s phase synchronization through changing two control parameters: the coupling range and the coupling strength. We indicate that via proper configuration of the coupling parameters, we influence the synchronization transition and reveal chimera states which have been associated with neurological disorders.