Digital Fireflies

We discuss an analog simulation of the Kuramoto model of coupled phase oscillators that can be constructed in the laboratory by coupling a set of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) through a microcontroller. The components of the circuit, namely a WS2812B LED strip, Arduino UNO R3, and a standard power supply, are inexpensive and can be sourced locally. By increasing the strength of the coupling, the ensemble of LEDs can be made to flash in synchrony, and the extent of synchronization can be quantified and measured.