The Spiral Staircase: Tonotopic Microstructure and Cochlear Tuning

Cochlear frequency-position maps are predicted to manifest a staircase-like structure comprising plateaus of nearly constant characteristic frequency separated by abrupt discontinuities. The height and width of the stair steps are determined by parameters of cochlear frequency tuning and vary with location in the cochlea. The step height is approximately equal to the critical band, and the step width matches that of the spatial excitation pattern produced by a low-level pure tone. Stepwise tonotopy is an emergent property arising from wave reflection and interference within the cochlea. Possible relationships between the microstructure of the cochlear map and the tiered tonotopy observed in the inferior colliculus are explored.