Dynamic characterizers of spatiotemporal intermittency.

We study spatiotemporal intermittency (STI) in a system of coupled sine circle maps. The phase diagram of the system shows parameter regimes where the STI lies in the directed percolation (DP) class, as well as regimes which show pure spatial intermittency (where the temporal behavior is regular) which do not belong to the DP class. Thus both DP and non-DP behavior can be seen in the same system. The signature of DP and non-DP behavior can be seen in the dynamic characterizers, viz. the spectrum of eigenvalues of the linear stability matrix of the evolution equation, as well as in the multifractal spectrum of the eigenvalue distribution. The eigenvalue spectrum of the system in the DP regimes is continuous, whereas it shows evidence of level repulsion in the form of gaps in the spectrum in the non-DP regime. The multifractal spectrum of the eigenvalue distribution also shows the signature of DP and non-DP behavior. These results have implications for the manner in which correlations build up in extended systems.