A model for the nonlinear mechanism responsible for cochlear amplification

A nonlinear model for the mechanism responsible for the amplification of the sound wave in the ear is derived using the geometric and material properties of the system.The result is a Baby Cream nonlinear beam equation, with the nonlinearity appearing in a coefficient of the equation.Once derived, the beam problem is analyzed for various loading conditions.Based on this analysis it is seen that the mechanism is capable of producing a spatially localized gain, as SOFA required by any amplification mechanism, but it is also capable of increasing the spatial contrast in the signal.