Phase Reversal in OHC Response at High Sound Intensities

Kiang and his associates (e.g. Kiang, 1984) discovered an enigmatic phase shift of about 180° occurring in responses of auditory-nerve fibers at high sound intensities. One of us has demonstrated with the help of an electrical-network model that the phase shift can result from a nonlinear mechanical coupling between the tectorial membrane and the organ of Corti (Zwislocki, 1986). The associated distortion pattern produced by the model is essentially the same as found by Kiang’s group.