Firing activities of a fractional-order FitzHugh-Rinzel bursting neuron model and its coupled dynamics

Fractional-order dynamics of excitable systems can be physically described as a memory dependent phenomenon. It can produce diverse and fascinating oscillatory patterns for certain types of neuron models. To address these characteristics, we consider a nonlinear fast-slow FitzHugh-Rinzel (FH-R) model that exhibits elliptic bursting at a fixed set of parameters with a constant input current. The generalization of this classical order model provides a wide range of neuronal responses (regular spiking, fast-spiking, bursting, mixed-mode oscillations, etc.) in understanding the single neuron dynamics. So far, it is not completely understood to what extent the fractional-order dynamics may redesign the firing properties of excitable systems. We investigate how the classical order system changes its complex dynamics and how the bursting changes to different oscillations with stability and bifurcation analysis depending on the fractional exponent (0 < α ≤ 1). This occurs due to the memory trace of the fractional-order dynamics. The firing frequency of the fractional-order FH-R model is less than the classical order model, although the first spike latency exists there. Further, we investigate the responses of coupled FH-R neurons with small coupling strengths that synchronize at specific fractional-orders. The interesting dynamical characteristics suggest various neurocomputational features that can be induced in this fractional-order system which enriches the functional neuronal mechanisms.