On the origin of the P3 event-related potential component

Human findings indicate that the most important brain regions in the electrogenesis of the P3 event-related potential component are the junction of the parieto-temporal lobes, parts of the limbic system and some parts of the thalamus. Data collected in animal experiments support the results of the human studies emphasizing the role of the association cortical areas, that of limbic structures and possibly of some thalamic nuclei. It is not clear as yet how the activity of these hypothesized generators are integrated and to what extent, and how they contribute to the scalp-recorded P3.