Theory and experiments of spiral unpinning in the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction using a circularly polarized electric field

Abstract

We present the first experimental study of unpinning a spiral wave of excitation using a circularly polarized electric field. The experiments are conducted in the Belousov-Zhabotinsky(BZ) reaction, and the system is modeled using the Oregenator model. The mechanism of unpinning in the BZ reaction differs from that in the physiological medium. We show that the wave unpins when the electric force opposes the propagation of the spiral wave. We developed an analytical relation of the unpinning phase with the initial phase, the pacing ratio, and the field strength and verified the same.