Leaky integrator
In mathematics, a leaky integrator equation is a specific differential equation, used to describe a component or system that takes the integral of an input, but gradually leaks a small amount of input over time. It appears commonly in hydraulics, electronics, and neuroscience where it can represent either a single neuron or a local population of neurons.
This is equivalent to a 1st-order lowpass filter with cutoff frequency far below the frequencies of interest.Equation
The equation is of the form
where C is the input and A is the rate of the 'leak'.As the equation is a nonhomogeneous first-order linear differential equation, its general solution is
where is a constant, and is an arbitrary solution of the equation.
