Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 24, 2026
09:58
Investigating the Three-dimensional Flow Separation Induced by a Model Vocal Fold Polyp
Published on: February 3, 2014
Dynamics of a spiral pair source and its interaction with plane waves
A Rabinovitch1, Y Biton, M Gutman
1Physics Department, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel. avinoam@bgu.ac.il
Computers in Biology and Medicine
|March 24, 2009
Summary
This study explores spiral wave dynamics in cardiac tissue, revealing how spiral wave sources interact with plane waves and external pacing. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for managing heart arrhythmias like figure-eight reentry.
Area of Science:
- Physics of complex systems
- Computational biology
- Cardiovascular dynamics
Background:
- Spiral waves are prevalent in nature and implicated in cardiac arrhythmias such as figure-eight reentry.
- Understanding the initiation and behavior of spiral wave sources is critical for developing therapeutic strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the emergence and minimal survival strength of spiral pair sources.
- To analyze the interaction of spiral pair sources with plane waves and pulsed stimuli.
- To explore the implications for cardiac arrhythmia and potential cancellation by external pacing.
Main Methods:
- Numerical simulations of spiral wave dynamics.
- Analysis of source-wave interactions under varying parameters (frequency, angle).
- Investigation of spiral source behavior including annihilation, motion, splitting, and multiplication.
Main Results:
- Identified distinct interaction regimes between spiral sources and plane waves.
- Demonstrated that spiral sources can be annihilated, repelled, attracted, or fragmented by incoming waves.
- Observed source multiplication under specific pulsing conditions.
Conclusions:
- The study provides insights into the complex dynamics of spiral wave sources in excitable media.
- Findings are relevant to understanding and potentially controlling cardiac arrhythmias like figure-eight reentry.
- External pacing strategies may be tailored based on these dynamics to prevent or terminate arrhythmias.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:29Plane Electromagnetic Waves II
Consider a plane wavefront traveling in position x-direction with a constant speed. This wavefront can be utilized to obtain the relationship between electric and magnetic fields with the help of Faraday's law.
01:26Divergence and Curl of Magnetic Field
The magnetic field due to a volume current distribution given by the Biot–Savart Law can be expressed as follows:
01:07Interference and Superposition of Waves
When two waves of the same nature occur in the same region simultaneously, they result in interference. Interference of waves implies that the net effect of the waves is the sum of the individual waves' effects. However, it does not imply that the individual waves affect the propagation of other waves.
Interference occurs in mechanical waves, such as sound waves, waves on a string, and surface water waves. Mechanical waves correspond to the physical displacement of particles. Hence,...
Interference occurs in mechanical waves, such as sound waves, waves on a string, and surface water waves. Mechanical waves correspond to the physical displacement of particles. Hence,...
01:30Plane Electromagnetic Waves I
The existence of combined electric and magnetic fields that propagate through space as electromagnetic (EM) waves is the most significant prediction of Maxwell's equations. As Maxwell's equations hold in free space, the predicted electromagnetic waves do not require a medium for their propagation. An EM wave comprises an electric field, defined as the force per charge on a stationary charge, and a magnetic field, which is the force per charge on a moving charge.
The EM field is assumed to be a...
The EM field is assumed to be a...
01:07Propagation of Waves
When a wave propagates from one medium to another, part of it may get reflected in the first medium, and part of it may get transmitted to the second medium. In such a case, the interface of the two mediums can be considered as a boundary that is neither fixed nor free.
Consider a scenario where a wave propagates from a string of low linear mass density to a string of high linear mass density. In such a case, the reflected wave is out of phase with respect to the incident wave, however the...
Consider a scenario where a wave propagates from a string of low linear mass density to a string of high linear mass density. In such a case, the reflected wave is out of phase with respect to the incident wave, however the...
01:28Standing Waves in a Cavity
A household microwave and lasers are examples of standing electromagnetic waves in a cavity. When two conducting metal plates are placed parallel at the nodal planes, it creates a cavity where standing waves are formed. The cavity between the two planes is analogous to a stretched string held at the points x = 0 and x = L. Here, the distance 'L' between the two planes must be an integer multiple of half of the wavelength. The wavelengths that satisfy this condition are given by: