We study the nonlinear response of the crayfish caudal photoreceptor to periodic mechanical stimuli in terms of stochastic synchronization. The amplitude and frequency of the mechanical stimuli and the light level are used as control parameters. The system shows multiple locking regions as the stimulus frequency is varied. We find that the synchronization index increases as the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the periodic drive, in response to increasing light levels; this effect exhibits features similar to stochastic resonance. We demonstrate a nonlinear rectification effect in which the SNR of the second harmonic of the input stimulus increases as the light level is raised, and show that the corresponding synchronization index increases as the SNR of the second harmonic.

• Received 1 August 2001

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.65.050901