Quasi-monochromatic noise in bistable systems : the nature of large occasional fluctuations.

The response of an overdamped system to quasi-monochromatic (high-frequency narrow band) noise (QMN) has been investigated by means of analogue electronic experiments. Measurements of the stationary and prehistory probability distributions demonstrate that large occasional fluctuations are markedly different in character from those that occur when the system is driven by white or exponentially correlated noise. In particular, we report the fIrst experimental observation of a switching point, a critical value of the coordinate x that separates regions which, with an overwhelming probability, are accessed by the fluctuating system along topologically different paths. The results are discussed in terms of, and shown to be consistent with an existing theoretical description of the QMN-driven system