On the temporal resolution limits of numerical simulations in complex systems

In this paper we formalize, using the Nyquist-Shannon theorem, a fundamental temporal resolution limit for numerical experiments in complex systems. A consequence of this limit is aliasing, the introduction of spurious frequencies due to sampling. By imposing these limits on the uncertainty principle in harmonic analysis, we show that by increasing the sampling interval Δ t, we can also artificially stretch the temporal behavior of our numerical experiment. Importantly, in limiting cases, we could even observe a new artificially created absorbing state. Our findings are validated in deterministic and stochastic simulations. In deterministic systems, we analyzed the Kuramoto model in which aliasing could be observed. In stochastic simulations, we formalized and compared different simulation approaches and showed their temporal limits. Gillespie-like simulations fully capture the continuous-time Markov chain processes, being lossless. Asynchronous cellular automata methods capture the same transitions as the continuous-time process but lose the temporal information about the process. Finally, synchronous cellular automata simulations solve a sampled chain. By comparing these methods, we show that if Δ t is not small enough, the cellular automata approach fails to capture the original continuous-time Markov chain since the sampling is already built into the simulation method. Our results point to a fundamental limitation that cannot be overcome by traditional methods of numerical simulations.