Mixed higher-order coupling stabilizes new states

Per Sebastian Skardal, Federico Battiston, Maxime Lucas, Matthew S Mizuhara, Giovanni Petri, Yuanzhao Zhang
arXiv
October 10, 2025

Understanding how higher-order interactions affect collective behavior is a central problem in nonlinear dynamics and complex systems. Most works have focused on a single higher-order coupling function, neglecting other viable choices. Here we study coupled oscillators with dyadic and three different types of higher-order couplings. By analyzing the stability of different twisted states on rings, we show that many states are stable only for certain combinations of higher-order couplings, and thus the full range of system dynamics cannot be observed unless all types of higher-order couplings are simultaneously considered.

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