Mechanisms of Avalanche Dynamics in a Stochastic Four-State Sandpile Model

We study the stochastic four-state sandpile model on the square lattice. The static and dynamical properties of the model are investigated and compared with the deterministic sandpile model of Bak, Tang, and Wiesenfeld Phys. Rev. Lett. 59 (1987) 381]. The numerical results show that the stochastic model defines a new universality class with respect to the deterministic sandpile. We also find that the waves in an avalanche are uncorrelated in the stochastic model (in the BTW model, the waves in an avalanche are correlated). The physical origin of the critical behaviour of the stochastic model being different from that of the BTW model is ascribed to the ordering and deterministic property of the toppling law in the BTW model.