Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Synthesis and Operation of Fluorescent-core Microcavities for Refractometric Sensing
Published on: March 13, 2013
Gap detection in multiple narrow bands of noise as a function of spectral configuration
1University of North Carolina, Division of Otolaryngology, Chapel Hill 27599-7070.
Abstract:
This study sought to differentiate between the effect of stimulus bandwidth and the effect of number of activated auditory channels on gap detection in narrow bands of noise. The aim was to clarify the role of across-frequency analysis in temporal processing. Experiment 1 established that when total noise bandwidth is held constant at 100 Hz, gap detection improves as stimulus energy is distributed to both lower and higher frequencies. Experiment 2a showed that the effect was smaller, or was absent, when the cumulative stimulus bandwidth was increased from 100 to 200 Hz. Experiment 2b confirmed that the benefit of spectral dispersion for the narrower cumulative bandwidth also held for a higher frequency region. The results suggest that in conditions where the cumulative stimulus bandwidth is relatively narrow and, concomitantly, gap detection is relatively poor, there is an advantage in dispersing the stimulus across a number of auditory channels. The advantage for the distribution of energy across a range of auditory channels may be offset when the spectral spacing of bands exceeds a critical value.
Related Concept Videos
¹H NMR: Interpreting Distorted and Overlapping Signals
As Δν decreases and the signals move closer, the doublets appear increasingly distorted. The intensities of the inner lines increase at the cost of those of the outer lines as the signals are slanted or...
IR Spectrum Peak Splitting: Symmetric vs Asymmetric Vibrations
NMR Spectrometers: Resolution and Error Correction
¹³C NMR: ¹H–¹³C Decoupling
A broadband decoupling technique is used to simplify these complex, sometimes overlapping, signals. Broadband decoupling relies on a...
IR Frequency Region: X–H Stretching
Difference from Background: Limit of Detection
The LOD indicates the presence or absence...

