Drift of scroll waves in thin layers caused by thickness features: asymptotic theory and numerical simulations

A scroll wave in a very thin layer of excitable medium is similar to a spiral wave, but its behaviour is affected by the layer geometry. We identify the effect of sharp variations of the layer thickness, which is separate from filament tension and curvature-induced drifts described earlier. We outline a two-step asymptotic theory describing this effect, including asymptotics in the layer thickness and calculation of the drift of so perturbed spiral waves using response functions. As specific examples, we consider drift of scrolls along thickness steps, ridges, ditches, and disk-shaped thickness variations. Asymptotic predictions agree with numerical simulations.

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