Cochlear Hydrodynamics Demystified

Abstract

Wave propagation in the mammalian cochlea (inner ear) is modeled as a unidirectional cascade of simple filters. The transfer functions of the low-order filter stages are completely determined by the wave-number vs. frequency solutions to the dispersion relations that describe the cochlea, which are in turn derived from twodimensional approximations to the fluid mechanics. Active undamping effects of the outer hair cells are easily included in the analysis and modeling, so that the results can be directly applied in the design of active adaptive cochlear models.