Sidebranch Structures of Dendritic Patterns in a Coupled Map Lattice Model

Dendrites with developed sidebranches are numerically studied with a coupled map lattice model. The competitive dynamics among sidebranches determines the shape of the envelope. The envelope has a parabolic shape near the tip of the dendrite and the envelope angle with respect to the main branch increases up to 45° finally. In an intermediate region, the envelope grows roughly in a power law, however, the exponent increases gradually as a function of the distance from the tip. The competitive dynamics among many branches is also observed in a unidirectional growth from a linear seed, and it is compared with the competitive dynamics of sidebranches.