The proper delay in a continuous function can be estimated by the linear autocorrelation function of nonlinear mutual information function. The two techniques differ from one being linear and the other being non-linear. To the extent that the input signal is nonlinear, the mutual information function is superior.
Besides the above sentence, what are your ideas from the physical view?
For a chaotic signal, after the Fourier transformation of the auto-correlation functionon on the delay time, the auto-correlation functionon is the exponential function of the delay time. That is, the auto-correlation functionon fall downexponentially with growth of the delay time.
What about the mutual information function from the physical view? How is the mutual information function physically related to an auto-correlation function?