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Distortion-Product Otoacoustic Emission Measured Below 300 Hz in Normal-Hearing Human Subjects

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Abstract

Physiological noise levels in the human ear canal often exceed naturally low levels of otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) near the threshold of hearing. Low-frequency noise, and electronic filtering to cope with it, has effectively limited the study of OAE to frequencies above about 500 Hz. Presently, a custom-built low-frequency acoustic probe was put to use in 21 normal-hearing human subjects (of 34 recruited). Distortion-product otoacoustic emission (DPOAE) was measured in the enclosed ear canal volume as the response to two simultaneously presented tones with frequencies f 1 and f 2. The stimulus–frequency ratio f 2/f 1 was varied systematically to find the “optimal” ratio evoking the largest level at 2 f 1−f 2 frequencies 87.9, 176, and 264 Hz. No reference data exist in this frequency region. Results show that DPOAE exists down to at least 87.9 Hz, maintaining the bell-shaped dependence on the f 2/f 1 ratio known from higher frequencies. Toward low frequencies, however, the bell broadens and the optimal ratio increases proportionally to the bandwidth of an auditory filter as defined by the equivalent rectangular bandwidth. The DPOAE phase rotates monotonously as a function of the stimulus ratio, and its slope trend supports the notion of a lack of scaling symmetry in the apex of the cochlea.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Claus Vestergaard Skipper for designing and implementing the preamplifier circuits and for helpful discussions in all aspects of the design of the acoustic probe used in the experiment. We give thanks to Sofus Birkedal Nielsen for important advice on the design of the preamplifier circuits. We also give special thanks to our subjects for making the first contact and patiently participating in the experiment for up to 2.5 h. The project was internally funded by Aalborg University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section for Signal and Information Processing, Department of Electronic Systems, Fredrik Bajers Vej 7B5, 9220, Aalborg, Denmark

    Anders T. Christensen, Rodrigo Ordoñez & Dorte Hammershøi

Authors
  1. Anders T. Christensen
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  2. Rodrigo Ordoñez
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  3. Dorte Hammershøi
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Correspondence to Anders T. Christensen.

Additional information

Results were preliminarily presented at the Audio Engineering Society 58th International Conference: Music Induced Hearing Disorders, June 2015 and at the International Symposium on Auditory and Audiological Research, August 2015.

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Christensen, A.T., Ordoñez, R. & Hammershøi, D. Distortion-Product Otoacoustic Emission Measured Below 300 Hz in Normal-Hearing Human Subjects. JARO 18, 197–208 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10162-016-0600-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10162-016-0600-x

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