Pattern Formation in Noisy Self-Replicating Spots

Among reaction-diffusion systems showing Turing patterns, the diffusive Gray-Scott model [Pearson, J. A., 1993, Science 261, 189] stands out by showing self-replicating patterns (spots), which makes it the ideal simple model for developmental research. A first study of the influence of noise in the Gray-Scott model was performed by Lesmes et al. [2003 Phys. Rev. Lett. 91, 238301] concluding that there is an optimal noise intensity for which spot multiplication is maximal. Here we show in details the transition from non-spotlike to spotlike pattern, with the identification of a wide range of noise intensities instead of an optimal value for which this transition occurs, suggesting a very robust intrinsicly noise-based emergent property.