Novel Approach for Controlling the Generation of Multiscroll Attractors and its Application in Image Encryption

Multiscroll chaotic systems have important applications in many engineering fields. Despite the growing research attention on the construction of multiscroll attractors, existing methods are afflicted by two critical limitations: insufficient generality and constrained direction arrangement of the multiple scrolls. This paper proposes a novel approach with exceptional performance regarding generality and diverse direction arrangement. The proposed approach is established based on generic autonomous dynamic systems and achieved through translation of the existing scrolls by predefined distances along any directions. Comparisons with other methods show that this approach enables more flexible control over the number, direction arrangement and spacing of scrolls. The application of this approach in information security is demonstrated by designing an encryption algorithm for image encryption and transmission. Performance analysis of this encryption algorithm reveals its high security. The excellent performance of this encryption algorithm implies a broader adaptability for practical applications of the proposed approach, which may inspire relevant research efforts.