# Emergent failures and cascades in power grids: a statistical physics perspective

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/1709.10166 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/1709.10166/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 28 Sep 2017.

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [Predicting Dynamic Stability from Static Features in Power Grid Models using Machine Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2210.09266/) (2022)

## Abstract (arXiv)

We model power grids transporting electricity generated by intermittent renewable sources as complex networks, where line failures can emerge indirectly by noisy power input at the nodes. By combining concepts from statistical physics and the physics of power flows, and taking weather correlations into account, we rank line failures according to their likelihood and establish the most likely way such failures occur and propagate. Our insights are mathematically rigorous in a small-noise limit and are validated with data from the German transmission grid.