System identification based on point processes and correlation densities. I: The nonrefractory neuron model (Q1820087)

This contribution is devoted to the discussion of a neuron model that transforms input point processes into an output point process. The main assumption is that the neuron is composed of two parts. The first is a set of linear filters which transform the input point processes into stochastic processes with discontinuities of the first type. In the second part the summation of such processes over the given set generates the output pulse sequence. The dynamics of the transition of the input to the output are studied for this model not in its general form. Some simplifications are made to achieve a compromise between generality and realism on one hand and mathematical tractability on the other. Using correlation density formalism, formulas that explicitly express the output autocorrelation and input-output crosscorrelation were derived. The results of this paper are supported by computer simulations of the model.