Noisy activation kinetics induces bursting in the Huber-Braun neuron model

We study a physiologically realistic implementation of internal stochasticity in a four-dimensional Hodgkin-Huxley type model of mammalian cold receptors. We show that in a deterministically tonic firing regime, this stochasticity can drive the neuron into a state of complex bursting behaviour. An explanation of the mechanism behind this effect is given in terms of phase space dynamics.     

Phase description of the Huber-Braun neuron model for mammalian cold receptors

The spiking activity of mammalian cold receptors is described by the Huber-Braun neuron model. Sweeping temperature as a control parameter across a biologically relevant range this model exhibits a complex bifurcation structure seen in the sequence of interspike intervals. The model’s distinctive feature is the interaction between a fast spike generating dynamics and a slow subthreshold oscillation. Viewing the spike generation as a cycle, the dynamics may also be modeled phenomenologically by two phases, one for the spike cycle and the second for the slow subthreshold oscillation. In fact, a phase model of temperature-dependent mammalian cold receptors was already proposed by Roper et al. (2000). Here we follow their approach and investigate to what extent this model is able to reproduce the bifurcation patterns of the Huber-Braun model. Special attention is paid to the tonic firing to bursting transition observed in the low temperature range.     

On the role of subthreshold currents in the Huber-Braun cold receptor model

We study the role of the strength of subthreshold currents in a four-dimensional Hodgkin-Huxley-type model of mammalian cold receptors. Since a total diminution of subthreshold activity corresponds to a decomposition of the model into a slow, subthreshold, and a fast, spiking subsystem, we first elucidate their respective dynamics separately and draw conclusions about their role for the generation of different spiking patterns. These results motivate a numerical bifurcation analysis of the effect of varying the strength of subthreshold currents, which is done by varying a suitable control parameter. We work out the key mechanisms which can be attributed to subthreshold activity and furthermore elucidate the dynamical backbone of different activity patterns generated by this model.     

Parameter dependence of stochastic resonance in the stochastic Hodgkin-Huxley neuron

Recently, the phenomena of stochastic resonance (SR) have attracted much attention in the studies of the excitable systems under inherent noise, in particular, nervous systems. We study SR in a stochastic Hodgkin-Huxley neuron under Ornstein-Uhlenbeck noise and periodic stimulus, focusing on the dependence of properties of SR on stimulus parameters. We find that the dependence of the critical forcing amplitude on the frequency of the periodic stimulus shows a bell-shaped structure with a minimum at the stimulus frequency, which is quite different from the monotonous dependence observed in the bistable system at a small frequency range. The frequency dependence of the critical forcing amplitude is explained in connection with the firing onset bifurcation curve of the Hodgkin-Huxley neuron in the deterministic situation. The optimal noise intensity for maximal amplification is also found to show a similar structure.     

A stochastic model for microtubule length dynamics

In this paper, we use random walk theory to describe the length dynamics of microtubules, one of the principal components of the cytoskeleton. We present a simple two-state model (growing and shrinking) of microtubule length evolution that incorporates a variable rate of switching between the states. Using the generating function technique, we calculate the mean length of microtubule, its variance and diffusion coefficient. We also report analytical and computer simulation results for the mean number of positive monomers in microtubule, and find good qualitative agreement with experimental data.     

A stochastic model for the dynamics of a classical spin

A stochastic model for the dynamics of a macroscopic or classical spin based on a classical generalized Lagrangian formalism is proposed. The model can be used to describe the evolution of the magnetic moment of superparamagnetic particles. In this sense, it is a generalization of the model proposed by Brown, allowing for fluctuations on the magnitudes of the magnetic moments of the particles. The corresponding covariant Fokker-Planck equation is also obtained.     

驱动马达定向运动的随机动力学模型

本文在非对称周期势中考虑驱动马达的机械化学耦合,基于布朗马达的工作原理,利用MATLAB数值模拟驱动马达在一定实验条件下的运动特征.我们首先模拟了单个驱动马达的位移和速度随时间变化的图像,然后分别计算了多个驱动马达运动的平均速度,最后计算了不同负载力条件下马达运动速度的系综平均值.模拟结果表明驱动马达在定向运动中存在等...     

ENSO事件随机动力学模型的渐近分析

利用边界层型函数，研究了ENSO事件随机动力学的某一模型，给出了这一问题的n阶渐 近展开式，将相关结论应用于特殊的ENSO事件，并得到了零阶渐近解，为分析ENSO事件的变 化状态提供了依据. 关键词： ENSO事件 边界层型函数 渐近展开式     

Temperature-dependent luminescence dynamics for ZnO thin films

The paper presents the photoluminescence investigation of zinc oxide thin films. A high quality ZnO films fabricated by dip-coating (sol–gel) method were grown on quartz wafers. The films with different thickness (number of layers) were annealed at different temperatures after the preparation process. It was found that high quality, transparent ZnO thin films could be produced on quartz substrates at relatively low annealing temperature (450–550  $^{\circ }\mathrm{C}$ ). The dependence of the ZnO thin film quality was studied by X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy techniques. Optical properties were investigated by classic and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) measurements. Photoluminescence spectra allowed us to estimate energy of the free excitons, bond excitons and their longitudinal optical (LO) phonon replicas as a function of the annealing temperature. An innovative TRPL technique let us precisely measure the decay time of the free- and bond excitons’ in the real time. TRPL measurements as a function of temperature reveal a biexponential decay behavior with typical free/bound exciton decay constants of 970/5310 ps for the as-grown sample and 1380/5980 ps after annealing process. Presented spectra confirm high structural and optical quality of investigated films. We proved that the thermal treatment improve both optical and structural quality and extend the photoluminescence’s lifetimes. The obtained experimental results are important for identification of exciton’s peaks and their LO phonon replicas for the investigated ZnO films.     

On the estimate of the stochastic layer width for a model of tracer dynamics

An analytical estimate of the width of the generated chaotic layer in a time-periodically driven stream function model for the motion of passive tracers is discussed. It is based essentially on the method of the separatrix map and the use of the Melnikov theory. Energy-time variables are used to derive lower bounds for the half width of the layer. In order to perform a comparison with numerical simulations, the results are transformed into space variables. The analytic results of the layer thickness in both parallel and perpendicular directions to the shear flow are compared with numerical computations and some systematic deviations are discussed.     

Critical dynamics of a stochastic n-vector model below Tc

The dynamic properties of a stochastic n-vector model are investigated for T < T_c in d=4−ε dimensions. Besides the non-conserved order parameter the model involves also the conserved densities of generators of the symmetry group O(n). We calculate the excitation spectra of those conserved densities and the transverse fluctuations of the order parameter to linear order in ε in the hydrodynamic region kξ1. The propagating modes have linear dispersion and quadratic damping in accordance with the phenomenological theory. The relaxing modes, however, exhibit non-hydrodynamic wavenumber dependence with a relaxation rate ω_k ∞ k^d/2.     

Low-temperature nucleation in a kinetic Ising model with soft stochastic dynamics

We study low-temperature nucleation in kinetic Ising models by analytical and simulational methods, confirming the general result for the average metastable lifetime, =Aexp((betagamma) (beta=1/k(B)T) [Commun. Math. Phys. 137, 209 (1991)]]. Contrary to common belief, we find that both A and Gamma depend significantly on the stochastic dynamic. In particular, for a "soft" dynamic, in which the effects of the interactions and the applied field factorize in the transition rates, Gamma does not simply equal the energy barrier against nucleation, as it does for the standard Glauber dynamic, which does not have this factorization property.     

Firing dynamics of an autaptic neuron

Autapses are synapses that connect a neuron to itself in the nervous system. Previously, both experimental and theoretical studies have demonstrated that autaptic connections in the nervous system have a significant physiological function. Autapses in nature provide self-delayed feedback, thus introducing an additional timescale to neuronal activities and causing many dynamic behaviors in neurons. Recently, theoretical studies have revealed that an autapse provides a control option for adjusting the response of a neuron: e.g., an autaptic connection can cause the electrical activities of the Hindmarsh–Rose neuron to switch between quiescent, periodic, and chaotic firing patterns; an autapse can enhance or suppress the mode-locking status of a neuron injected with sinusoidal current; and the firing frequency and interspike interval distributions of the response spike train can also be modified by the autapse. In this paper, we review recent studies that showed how an autapse affects the response of a single neuron.     

On the foundations of stochastic dislocation dynamics

A stochastic approach to dislocation dynamics is proposed that starts off from considering the geometrically necessary fluctuations of the local stress and strain rate caused by long-range dislocation interactions during plastic flow. On a mesoscopic scale, a crystal undergoing plastic deformation is thus considered an effective fluctuating medium. The auto- and cross-correlation functions of the effective stress and the plastic strain rate are derived. The influences of dislocation multiplication, storage and cross slip on the correlation functions are discussed. Various analogies and fundamental differences to the statistical mechanics of thermodynamic equilibrium are outlined. Application of the theory of noise-induced transitions to dislocation dynamics gives new insight into the physical origin of the spontaneous formation of dislocation structures during plastic deformation. The results demonstrate the importance of the strain-rate sensitivity in dislocation patterning.     

On the stochastic dynamics of Ising models

With the help of recent results in the mathematical theory of master equations, we present a rigorous derivation of the stochastic Glauber dynamics of Ising models from Hamiltonian quantum mechanics. A thermal bath is explicitly constructed and, as an illustration, the dynamics of the Ising-Weiss model is analyzed in the thermodynamic limit. We thus obtain an example of a nonequilibrium statistical mechanical system for which a link without mathematical gap can be established from microscopic quantum mechanics to a macroscopic irreversible thermodynamic process.     

Relativistic dynamics of stochastic particles

Particle motion in stochastic space, i.e., space whose coordinates consist of small, regular stochastic parts, is considered. A free particle in this space resembles a Brownian particle the motion of which is characterized by a dispersionD dependent on the universal length l. It is shown that in the first approximation in the parameter l the particle motion in an external force field is described by equations coincident in form with equations of stochastic mechanics due to Nelson, Kershow, and de la Pena-Auerbach. A method is proposed for the relativization of the scheme used to describe the processes in the stochastic space; by using this method, the equations of particle motion can be written in a covariant form.