The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Excitability modulation of oscillating media in 3D-printed structures

Excitability modulation of oscillating media in 3D-printed structures
Excitability modulation of oscillating media in 3D-printed structures
Excitation and oscillation are central to living systems. For excitable systems, which can be brought into oscillation by an external stimulus, the excitation threshold is a crucial parameter. This is evident for neurons, which only generate an action potential when exposed to a sufficiently high concentration of excitatory neurotransmitters, which may only be achieved when multiple presynaptic axons deliver their action potential simultaneously to the synaptic cleft. Dynamic systems composed of relatively simple chemicals are of interest because they can serve as a model for physiological processes or can be exploited to implement chemical computing. With these applications in mind, we have studied the properties of the oscillatory Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction in 3D-printed reaction vessels with open channels of different dimensions. It is demonstrated that the channel geometry can be used to modulate the excitability of the BZ medium, switching a continuously oscillating medium to an excitable medium. Because large networks of channel-connected reaction wells of different depth can easily be fabricated by 3D printing, local excitability modulation could be built into the structure of the reaction vessel itself, opening the way to more extensive experimentation with networks of chemical oscillators.
225-233
King, Philip H.
3a0f2b7e-b08a-46b2-abef-89be45c2a7d5
Abraham, Chinnu H.
41206d1d-73fd-49e6-bfa4-18b0c0ad39bb
Zauner, Klaus-Peter
c8b22dbd-10e6-43d8-813b-0766f985cc97
de Planque, Maurits R.R.
a1d33d13-f516-44fb-8d2c-c51d18bc21ba
King, Philip H.
3a0f2b7e-b08a-46b2-abef-89be45c2a7d5
Abraham, Chinnu H.
41206d1d-73fd-49e6-bfa4-18b0c0ad39bb
Zauner, Klaus-Peter
c8b22dbd-10e6-43d8-813b-0766f985cc97
de Planque, Maurits R.R.
a1d33d13-f516-44fb-8d2c-c51d18bc21ba

King, Philip H., Abraham, Chinnu H., Zauner, Klaus-Peter and de Planque, Maurits R.R. (2015) Excitability modulation of oscillating media in 3D-printed structures. Artificial Life, 21 (2), 225-233. (doi:10.1162/ARTL_a_00158). (PMID:25622017)

Record type: Article

Abstract

Excitation and oscillation are central to living systems. For excitable systems, which can be brought into oscillation by an external stimulus, the excitation threshold is a crucial parameter. This is evident for neurons, which only generate an action potential when exposed to a sufficiently high concentration of excitatory neurotransmitters, which may only be achieved when multiple presynaptic axons deliver their action potential simultaneously to the synaptic cleft. Dynamic systems composed of relatively simple chemicals are of interest because they can serve as a model for physiological processes or can be exploited to implement chemical computing. With these applications in mind, we have studied the properties of the oscillatory Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction in 3D-printed reaction vessels with open channels of different dimensions. It is demonstrated that the channel geometry can be used to modulate the excitability of the BZ medium, switching a continuously oscillating medium to an excitable medium. Because large networks of channel-connected reaction wells of different depth can easily be fabricated by 3D printing, local excitability modulation could be built into the structure of the reaction vessel itself, opening the way to more extensive experimentation with networks of chemical oscillators.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Accepted/In Press date: 5 January 2015
Published date: 22 May 2015
Organisations: Nanoelectronics and Nanotechnology, Agents, Interactions & Complexity

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 349260
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/349260
PURE UUID: e2a3b328-d824-4b70-8320-409afe99a271
ORCID for Maurits R.R. de Planque: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-8787-0513

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 27 Feb 2013 08:46
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 13:11

Export record

Altmetrics

Contributors

Author: Philip H. King
Author: Chinnu H. Abraham
Author: Klaus-Peter Zauner
Author: Maurits R.R. de Planque ORCID iD

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×