Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2026

Real-time Electrophysiology: Using Closed-loop Protocols to Probe Neuronal Dynamics and Beyond
Published on: June 24, 2015
Phase switching in a system of two noisy Hodgkin-Huxley neurons coupled by a diffusive interaction
1Area de Física Teórica, Universidad de Sevilla, Apartado de Correos 1065, 41080 Sevilla, Spain. casado@us.es
Abstract:
The focus of this paper is on the synchronous activity of a system of two intrinsically noisy Hodgkin-Huxley neurons coupled by a diffusive interaction. It is shown that conductance noise allows the relative phase of the neurons to display several different dynamical regimes ranging from phase and antiphase locking to random switching between two or more states. A synchronization diagram displaying the structure of the distribution function of the cyclic relative phase of the two neurons is presented. The addition of sinusoidal forcing terms to the equations governing the membrane voltage of both neurons gives rise to the statistical locking of those random switchings to the phase of the external signal.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Synaptic Signaling
Most synapses are chemical, meaning an electrical impulse or action potential spurs the release of chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. The neuron sending the signal is called the presynaptic neuron, and the neuron receiving the signal is the postsynaptic neuron.
The presynaptic neuron fires an action potential that...
Electrical Synapses
Gap junctions allow the current to pass directly from one cell to the next. In contrast, in the chemical synapse, the neurotransmitters carry the information through the synaptic cleft from one neuron to the next. They consist of two...
The Role of Ion Channels in Neuronal Computation
Sometimes a single EPSP is strong enough to induce an action potential in the postsynaptic neuron. However, multiple presynaptic inputs must often create EPSPs around the same time for the postsynaptic neuron to be sufficiently depolarized to fire an action potential.
Propagation of Action Potentials
Neurons (nerve cells) have a resting membrane potential, with a slightly negative charge inside compared to outside. This is maintained by ion channels, such as sodium (Na+) and potassium (K+) channels, which control the flow of ions. When a stimulus, like a touch or a signal from another neuron, triggers the neuron, sodium channels open, allowing sodium ions to...
Neural Circuits
Neuronal pools are collections of nerve cells with similar functions and interact through chemical and electrical signals. These pools include both interneurons (the central neural circuit nodes that...
Second Order systems II
If ζ...

