Bistability

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A graph of the potential energy of a bistable system; it has two local minima
x
1
{\displaystyle x_{1}}
and
x
2
{\displaystyle x_{2}}
. A surface shaped like this with two "low points" can act as a bistable system; a ball resting on the surface can only be stable at those two positions, such as balls marked "1" and "2". Between the two is a local maximum
x
3
{\displaystyle x_{3}}
. A ball located at this point, ball 3, is in equilibrium but unstable; the slightest disturbance will cause it to move to one of the stable points. Bistability graph.svg
A graph of the potential energy of a bistable system; it has two local minima and . A surface shaped like this with two "low points" can act as a bistable system; a ball resting on the surface can only be stable at those two positions, such as balls marked "1" and "2". Between the two is a local maximum . A ball located at this point, ball 3, is in equilibrium but unstable; the slightest disturbance will cause it to move to one of the stable points.
Light switch, a bistable mechanism Rocker light switch.jpg
Light switch, a bistable mechanism

In a dynamical system, bistability means the system has two stable equilibrium states. [1] A bistable structure can be resting in either of two states. An example of a mechanical device which is bistable is a light switch. The switch lever is designed to rest in the "on" or "off" position, but not between the two. Bistable behavior can occur in mechanical linkages, electronic circuits, nonlinear optical systems, chemical reactions, and physiological and biological systems.

Contents

In a conservative force field, bistability stems from the fact that the potential energy has two local minima, which are the stable equilibrium points. [2] These rest states need not have equal potential energy. By mathematical arguments, a local maximum, an unstable equilibrium point, must lie between the two minima. At rest, a particle will be in one of the minimum equilibrium positions, because that corresponds to the state of lowest energy. The maximum can be visualized as a barrier between them.

A system can transition from one state of minimal energy to the other if it is given enough activation energy to penetrate the barrier (compare activation energy and Arrhenius equation for the chemical case). After the barrier has been reached, assuming the system has damping, it will relax into the other minimum state in a time called the relaxation time.

Bistability is widely used in digital electronics devices to store binary data. It is the essential characteristic of the flip-flop, a circuit which is a fundamental building block of computers and some types of semiconductor memory. A bistable device can store one bit of binary data, with one state representing a "0" and the other state a "1". It is also used in relaxation oscillators, multivibrators, and the Schmitt trigger. Optical bistability is an attribute of certain optical devices where two resonant transmissions states are possible and stable, dependent on the input. Bistability can also arise in biochemical systems, where it creates digital, switch-like outputs from the constituent chemical concentrations and activities. It is often associated with hysteresis in such systems.

Mathematical modelling

In the mathematical language of dynamic systems analysis, one of the simplest bistable systems is[ citation needed ]

This system describes a ball rolling down a curve with shape , and has three equilibrium points: , , and . The middle point is marginally stable ( is stable but will not converge to ), while the other two points are stable. The direction of change of over time depends on the initial condition . If the initial condition is positive (), then the solution approaches 1 over time, but if the initial condition is negative (), then approaches −1 over time. Thus, the dynamics are "bistable". The final state of the system can be either or , depending on the initial conditions. [3]

The appearance of a bistable region can be understood for the model system which undergoes a supercritical pitchfork bifurcation with bifurcation parameter .

In biological and chemical systems

Three-dimensional invariant measure for cellular-differentiation featuring a two-stable mode. The axes denote cell counts for three types of cells: progenitor (
z
{\displaystyle z}
), osteoblast (
y
{\displaystyle y}
), and chondrocyte (
x
{\displaystyle x}
). Pro-osteoblast stimulus promotes P-O transition. Stimuli.pdf
Three-dimensional invariant measure for cellular-differentiation featuring a two-stable mode. The axes denote cell counts for three types of cells: progenitor (), osteoblast (), and chondrocyte (). Pro-osteoblast stimulus promotes P→O transition.

Bistability is key for understanding basic phenomena of cellular functioning, such as decision-making processes in cell cycle progression, cellular differentiation, [5] and apoptosis. It is also involved in loss of cellular homeostasis associated with early events in cancer onset and in prion diseases as well as in the origin of new species (speciation). [6]

Bistability can be generated by a positive feedback loop with an ultrasensitive regulatory step. Positive feedback loops, such as the simple X activates Y and Y activates X motif, essentially link output signals to their input signals and have been noted to be an important regulatory motif in cellular signal transduction because positive feedback loops can create switches with an all-or-nothing decision. [7] Studies have shown that numerous biological systems, such as Xenopus oocyte maturation, [8] mammalian calcium signal transduction, and polarity in budding yeast, incorporate multiple positive feedback loops with different time scales (slow and fast). [7] Having multiple linked positive feedback loops with different time scales ("dual-time switches") allows for (a) increased regulation: two switches that have independent changeable activation and deactivation times; and (b) noise filtering. [7]

Bistability can also arise in a biochemical system only for a particular range of parameter values, where the parameter can often be interpreted as the strength of the feedback. In several typical examples, the system has only one stable fixed point at low values of the parameter. A saddle-node bifurcation gives rise to a pair of new fixed points emerging, one stable and the other unstable, at a critical value of the parameter. The unstable solution can then form another saddle-node bifurcation with the initial stable solution at a higher value of the parameter, leaving only the higher fixed solution. Thus, at values of the parameter between the two critical values, the system has two stable solutions. An example of a dynamical system that demonstrates similar features is

where is the output, and is the parameter, acting as the input. [9]

Bistability can be modified to be more robust and to tolerate significant changes in concentrations of reactants, while still maintaining its "switch-like" character. Feedback on both the activator of a system and inhibitor make the system able to tolerate a wide range of concentrations. An example of this in cell biology is that activated CDK1 (Cyclin Dependent Kinase 1) activates its activator Cdc25 while at the same time inactivating its inactivator, Wee1, thus allowing for progression of a cell into mitosis. Without this double feedback, the system would still be bistable, but would not be able to tolerate such a wide range of concentrations. [10]

Bistability has also been described in the embryonic development of Drosophila melanogaster (the fruit fly). Examples are anterior-posterior [11] and dorso-ventral [12] [13] axis formation and eye development. [14]

A prime example of bistability in biological systems is that of Sonic hedgehog (Shh), a secreted signaling molecule, which plays a critical role in development. Shh functions in diverse processes in development, including patterning limb bud tissue differentiation. The Shh signaling network behaves as a bistable switch, allowing the cell to abruptly switch states at precise Shh concentrations. gli1 and gli2 transcription is activated by Shh, and their gene products act as transcriptional activators for their own expression and for targets downstream of Shh signaling. [15] Simultaneously, the Shh signaling network is controlled by a negative feedback loop wherein the Gli transcription factors activate the enhanced transcription of a repressor (Ptc). This signaling network illustrates the simultaneous positive and negative feedback loops whose exquisite sensitivity helps create a bistable switch.

Bistability can only arise in biological and chemical systems if three necessary conditions are fulfilled: positive feedback, a mechanism to filter out small stimuli and a mechanism to prevent increase without bound. [6]

Bistable chemical systems have been studied extensively to analyze relaxation kinetics, non-equilibrium thermodynamics, stochastic resonance, as well as climate change. [6] In bistable spatially extended systems the onset of local correlations and propagation of traveling waves have been analyzed. [16] [17]

Bistability is often accompanied by hysteresis. On a population level, if many realisations of a bistable system are considered (e.g. many bistable cells (speciation) [18] ), one typically observes bimodal distributions. In an ensemble average over the population, the result may simply look like a smooth transition, thus showing the value of single-cell resolution.

A specific type of instability is known as modehopping, which is bi-stability in the frequency space. Here trajectories can shoot between two stable limit cycles, and thus show similar characteristics as normal bi-stability when measured inside a Poincare section.

In mechanical systems

A ratchet in action. Each tooth in the ratchet together with the regions to either side of it constitutes a simple bistable mechanism. Ratchet example.gif
A ratchet in action. Each tooth in the ratchet together with the regions to either side of it constitutes a simple bistable mechanism.

Bistability as applied in the design of mechanical systems is more commonly said to be "over centre"—that is, work is done on the system to move it just past the peak, at which point the mechanism goes "over centre" to its secondary stable position. The result is a toggle-type action- work applied to the system below a threshold sufficient to send it 'over center' results in no change to the mechanism's state.

Springs are a common method of achieving an "over centre" action. A spring attached to a simple two position ratchet-type mechanism can create a button or plunger that is clicked or toggled between two mechanical states. Many ballpoint and rollerball retractable pens employ this type of bistable mechanism.

An even more common example of an over-center device is an ordinary electric wall switch. These switches are often designed to snap firmly into the "on" or "off" position once the toggle handle has been moved a certain distance past the center-point.

A ratchet-and-pawl is an elaboration—a multi-stable "over center" system used to create irreversible motion. The pawl goes over center as it is turned in the forward direction. In this case, "over center" refers to the ratchet being stable and "locked" in a given position until clicked forward again; it has nothing to do with the ratchet being unable to turn in the reverse direction.

See also

Related Research Articles

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Hysteresis is the dependence of the state of a system on its history. For example, a magnet may have more than one possible magnetic moment in a given magnetic field, depending on how the field changed in the past. Plots of a single component of the moment often form a loop or hysteresis curve, where there are different values of one variable depending on the direction of change of another variable. This history dependence is the basis of memory in a hard disk drive and the remanence that retains a record of the Earth's magnetic field magnitude in the past. Hysteresis occurs in ferromagnetic and ferroelectric materials, as well as in the deformation of rubber bands and shape-memory alloys and many other natural phenomena. In natural systems, it is often associated with irreversible thermodynamic change such as phase transitions and with internal friction; and dissipation is a common side effect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Relaxation oscillator</span> Oscillator that produces a nonsinusoidal repetitive waveform

In electronics, a relaxation oscillator is a nonlinear electronic oscillator circuit that produces a nonsinusoidal repetitive output signal, such as a triangle wave or square wave. The circuit consists of a feedback loop containing a switching device such as a transistor, comparator, relay, op amp, or a negative resistance device like a tunnel diode, that repetitively charges a capacitor or inductor through a resistance until it reaches a threshold level, then discharges it again. The period of the oscillator depends on the time constant of the capacitor or inductor circuit. The active device switches abruptly between charging and discharging modes, and thus produces a discontinuously changing repetitive waveform. This contrasts with the other type of electronic oscillator, the harmonic or linear oscillator, which uses an amplifier with feedback to excite resonant oscillations in a resonator, producing a sine wave.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Positive feedback</span> Feedback loop that increases an initial small effect

Positive feedback is a process that occurs in a feedback loop which exacerbates the effects of a small disturbance. That is, the effects of a perturbation on a system include an increase in the magnitude of the perturbation. That is, A produces more of B which in turn produces more of A. In contrast, a system in which the results of a change act to reduce or counteract it has negative feedback. Both concepts play an important role in science and engineering, including biology, chemistry, and cybernetics.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schmitt trigger</span> Electronic comparator circuit with hysteresis

In electronics, a Schmitt trigger is a comparator circuit with hysteresis implemented by applying positive feedback to the noninverting input of a comparator or differential amplifier. It is an active circuit which converts an analog input signal to a digital output signal. The circuit is named a trigger because the output retains its value until the input changes sufficiently to trigger a change. In the non-inverting configuration, when the input is higher than a chosen threshold, the output is high. When the input is below a different (lower) chosen threshold the output is low, and when the input is between the two levels the output retains its value. This dual threshold action is called hysteresis and implies that the Schmitt trigger possesses memory and can act as a bistable multivibrator. There is a close relation between the two kinds of circuits: a Schmitt trigger can be converted into a latch and a latch can be converted into a Schmitt trigger.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cell cycle checkpoint</span> Control mechanism in the eukaryotic cell cycle

Cell cycle checkpoints are control mechanisms in the eukaryotic cell cycle which ensure its proper progression. Each checkpoint serves as a potential termination point along the cell cycle, during which the conditions of the cell are assessed, with progression through the various phases of the cell cycle occurring only when favorable conditions are met. There are many checkpoints in the cell cycle, but the three major ones are: the G1 checkpoint, also known as the Start or restriction checkpoint or Major Checkpoint; the G2/M checkpoint; and the metaphase-to-anaphase transition, also known as the spindle checkpoint. Progression through these checkpoints is largely determined by the activation of cyclin-dependent kinases by regulatory protein subunits called cyclins, different forms of which are produced at each stage of the cell cycle to control the specific events that occur therein.

A series of biochemical switches control transitions between and within the various phases of the cell cycle. The cell cycle is a series of complex, ordered, sequential events that control how a single cell divides into two cells, and involves several different phases. The phases include the G1 and G2 phases, DNA replication or S phase, and the actual process of cell division, mitosis or M phase. During the M phase, the chromosomes separate and cytokinesis occurs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ultrasensitivity</span>

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Within molecular and cell biology, temporal feedback, also referred to as interlinked or interlocked feedback, is a biological regulatory motif in which fast and slow positive feedback loops are interlinked to create "all or none" switches. This interlinking produces separate, adjustable activation and de-activation times. This type of feedback is thought to be important in cellular processes in which an "all or none" decision is a necessary response to a specific input. The mitotic trigger, polarization in budding yeast, mammalian calcium signal transduction, EGF receptor signaling, platelet activation, and Xenopus oocyte maturation are examples for interlinked fast and slow multiple positive feedback systems.

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