Sharp corners as sources of spiral pairs

It is demonstrated that using the FitzHugh-Nagumo model, stimulation of excitable media inside a region possessing sharp corners, can lead to the appearance of sources of spiral-pairs of sustained activity. The two conditions for such source creation are: The corners should be less than 120 degrees and the range of stimulating amplitudes should be small, occurring just above the threshold value and decreasing with the corner angle. The basic mechanisms driving the phenomenon are discussed. These include: A. If the corner angle is below 120 degrees, the wave generated inside cannot emerge at the corner tip, resulting in the creation of two free edges which start spiraling towards each other. B. Spiraling must be strong enough: otherwise annihilation of the rotating arms would occur too soon to create a viable source. C. The intricacies of the different radii involved are elucidated. Possible applications in heart stimulation and in chemical reactions are considered. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.