Electrodiffusion Model of Rectangular Current Pulses in Ionic Channels of Cellular Membranes

A simplified electrodiffusion model for rectangular current pulses in ionic channels of biological membranes is presented. Numerical simulations and a dynamical systems analysis of traveling wave solutions in the model indicate that the durations and separations of current pulses vary stochastically in time, as is observed experimentally. An electrodiffusion theory of the mechanism for gating is advanced.