SR40 1981-2021 forty years of Stochastic Resonance

The Stochastic Resonance (SR) phenomenon has been discovered and proposed for the first time in 1981 to explain the periodic recurrence of ice ages. Since then the same principle has been applied in a wide variety of systems and nowadays SR is commonly invoked when noise and nonlinearity concur to determine an increase of order in the system response. The term is given to a phenomenon that is manifest in nonlinear systems whereby generally feeble input information (such as a weak signal) can be amplified and optimized by the assistance of noise. The effect requires three basic ingredients: (i) an energetic activation barrier or, more generally, a form of threshold; (ii) a weak coherent input (such as a periodic signal); (iii) a source of noise that is inherent in the system, or that adds to the coherent input. Given these features, the response of the system undergoes resonance-like behavior as a function of the noise level; hence the name stochastic resonance. The underlying mechanism is fairly simple and robust. As a consequence, stochastic resonance has been observed in a large variety of systems that span from chemical reactions to biological systems, from micromechanical devices to electronic apparata, from social systems to climate models, from signal detection to energy harvesting.

Over the last decades, stochastic resonance has continuously attracted considerable attention and to date more than 38,000 papers have been published with the words “Stochastic Resonance” in their title alone.

The main goal of the conference is to bring together the international experts in the topics, including the first proposers (Benzi, Parisi and Vulpiani), to review the state-of-the-art of the theory, technology and applications related to the notion of stochastic resonance (SR) in its broader meaning and implications, including phenomena where the role of noise and randomness is relevant.

A list of the conference topics, includes: - Non-linear stochastic modelling; - SR-based sensors and actuators; - SR in biological systems; - SR application in signal analysis; - Quantum SR - SR in economy; - SR in energy harvesting; - SR in communications.

Principle Organizers: Prof. G. Parisi (Accademia Lincei, IT), R. Benzi (University of Rome - Tor Vergata), L. Gammaitoni (University of Perugia), A. Vulpiani (University of Rome - La Sapienza). Speakers: M. Dykmann (Michigan State University), P. Malgaretti (Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy), P. McClintock (Lancaster University), M. Rubi (Universitat de Barcelona), C. Presilla (University of Rome - La Sapienza), S. Ciliberto (Laboratoire de Physique de ENSL), P. Hanggi (University of Augsburg), I. Khovanov (University of Warwick).

Conference site: https://www.sr40.org