Optimizing diffusion in multiplexes by maximizing layer dissimilarity

Occurrence of super-diffusion in two-layer networks

Super-diffusion is a phenomenon that can be observed in multilayer networks, which describes that the diffusion in a multilayer network is faster than that in the fastest individual layer. In most studies of super-diffusion on two-layer networks, many researchers have focused on the overlap of edges in the two layers and the mode of interlayer connectivity. We discover that the occurrence of super-diffusion in two-layer networks is not necessarily related to the overlap degree. In particular, in a two-layer network, sparse topological structures of individual layers are more beneficial to the occurrence of super-diffusion than dense topological structures. Additionally, similar diffusion abilities of both layers favor super-diffusion. The density of interlayer edges and interlayer connection patterns also influence the occurrence of super-diffusion. This paper offers suggestions to improve the diffusion ability in two-layer networks, which can facilitate the selection of practical information transmission paths between different systems and optimize the design of the internal framework of a company composed of multiple departments.

Superdiffusion induced by complete structure in multiplex networks

After the groundbreaking work by Gómez et al., the superdiffusion phenomenon on multiplex networks begins to attract researchers' attention. The emergence of superdiffusion means that the time scale of the diffusion process of the multiplex network is shorter than that of each layer. Using the optimization theory, the manuscript studies the greatest impact of one edge on the network diffusion speed. It is proved that by deleting any edge from a given network, the drop of the second smallest eigenvalue of its Laplacian matrix is at most 2. Based on the conclusion, the relation between the complete structure and the superdiffusible network is studied, and, further, some superdiffusion criteria on general duplex networks are proposed. Interestingly, the theoretical results indicate that the emergence of superdiffusion depends on the complete structure rather than the overlap one. Some numerical examples are shown to verify the effectiveness of the theoretical results.

Superdiffusion criteria on duplex networks

Diffusion processes widely exist in nature. Some recent papers concerning diffusion processes focus their attention on multiplex networks. Superdiffusion, a phenomenon by which diffusion processes converge to equilibrium faster on multiplex networks than on single networks in isolation, may emerge because diffusion can occur both within and across layers. Some studies have shown that the emergence of superdiffusion depends on the topology of multiplex networks if the interlayer diffusion coefficient is large enough. This paper proposes some superdiffusion criteria relating to the Laplacian matrices of the two layers and provides a construction mechanism for generating a superdiffusible two-layered network. The method we proposed can be used to guide the discovery and construction of superdiffusible multiplex networks without calculating the second smallest Laplacian eigenvalues.

Relaxation time of the global order parameter on multiplex networks: The role of interlayer coupling in Kuramoto oscillators

This work considers the time scales associated with the global order parameter and the interlayer synchronization of coupled Kuramoto oscillators on multiplexes. For two-layer multiplexes with an initially high degree of synchronization in each layer, the difference between the average phases in each layer is analyzed from two different perspectives: the spectral analysis and the nonlinear Kuramoto model. Both viewpoints confirm that the prior time scales are inversely proportional to the interlayer coupling strength. Thus, increasing the interlayer coupling always shortens the transient regimes of both the global order parameter and the interlayer synchronization. Surprisingly, the analytical results show that the convergence of the global order parameter is faster than the interlayer synchronization, and the latter is generally faster than the global synchronization of the multiplex. The formalism also outlines the effects of frequencies on the difference between the average phases of each layer, and it identifies the conditions for an oscillatory behavior. Computer simulations are in fairly good agreement with the analytical findings, and they reveal that the time scale of the global order parameter is half the size of the time scale of the multiplex, if not smaller.