Excitation Models

Abstract

Variations in the stimulus waveform or in the electrode arrangement can result in vastly different stimulation thresholds. To fully understand the factors responsible for electrical stimulation, computational models must connect features of the stimulus current with properties of excitable tissue described in Chapter 3. However, a simpler approach based on a linear, spatially limited membrane can provide insight into underlying electrical processes, and also provide closed-form mathematical expressions for some excitation relationships. This chapter begins with simple linear analysis models, and proceeds to a more complex, spatially extended nonlinear model.