title: Phase transition in a swarm algorithm for self-organized construction.
abstract: This paper reports on a system where very simple, noncommunicating mobile agents in a cellular (lattice) environment use purely local rules to construct connected structures from initially randomly distributed building blocks. We study the effect of block density on the final structure, demonstrating a percolationlike phase transition: Low block densities lead to the formation of small, disconnected structures but a single connected structure emerges abruptly beyond a critical density. The empirical study of the structure at the transition point shows scaling behavior, providing strong evidence for criticality. We also demonstrate that a simple change of rules can completely change the phase-transition effect. The results have implications for the self-organized construction of complex structures by swarms.
authors.affiliation: Complex Adaptive Systems Laboratory, ECECS Department, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45221-0030, USA.
authors.forename: Henri
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: Ravi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kothari
authors.forename: Ali A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Minai