THE DETECTION THRESHOLD, NOISE AND STOCHASTIC RESONANCE IN THE FITZHUGH-NAGUMO NEURON MODEL

In a class of experiments in sensory biology sub- or slightly supra-th reshold stimuli are applied at the periphery while making action poten tial recordings at a higher level in the nervous system. In many cases the records are largely noise but with a small coherence with the sti mulus. The detection threshold for increasing stimulus intensity is fr equently measured, and this threshold can often be controlled by manip ulating some additional biological parameter, for example, the tempera ture or inherent noise intensity. How does this parameter change the d etection threshold? In this note, we test three popular paradigms on a n electronic Fitzhugh-Nagumo neuron model and compare the results with a simple threshold theory.