Du Bois-Reymond Induction Coil

Du Bois-Reymond Induction Coil 

a generator of induced current, used in physiology and physiotherapy to stimulate excitable tissues. It was developed by the German physiologist E. Du Bois-Reymond in the mid-19th century and was widely used until the mid-20th century.

The Du Bois-Reymond induction coil has a primary coil and a secondary, movable coil set on slide rails. The primary coil is fed from a low-voltage DC circuit through some kind of contact breaker; the secondary coil is connected to the stimulating electrodes. The magnitude of the electromotive force of the induced current is selected by changing the distance between the coils.

The Du Bois-Reymond induction coil produces interference when bioelectric potentials are being recorded, and it has been generally replaced by more convenient and accurately graduated electronic stimulators. However, it is still the only device used for the automatic determination of the stimulation thresh-hold of a nerve.

REFERENCE

Kogan, A. B., and S. I. Shchitov. Tekhnika fiziologicheskogo eksperimenta. Moscow, 1967.