Saddle node loop bifurcations ubiquitously occur in conductance based model neurons and promote spike based coding and synchronization
Information processing in the brain crucially depends on coding properties of single neurons shaped by their intrinsic dynamics. Our theoretical study shows that neuronal excitability, spike based coding, and synchronization change drastically around a special dynamical regime: the codimension two saddle node loop bifurcation. This bifurcation maximizes the entrainment range and turns out to be more relevant for spike based processing than the typically considered Bogdanov Takens point. We show that the saddle node loop bifurcation occurs ubiquitously in a generic class of neuron models (planar type I) Our theory, applied to optical stimulation techniques, reveals that they could manipulate a variety of information processing characteristics in nerve cells beyond pure stimulation.