Spike-timing Dependent Plasticity and Mutual Information Maximization for a Spiking Neuron Model

Part of Advances in Neural Information Processing Systems 17 (NIPS 2004)

Authors

Taro Toyoizumi, Jean-pascal Pfister, Kazuyuki Aihara, Wulfram Gerstner

Abstract

We derive an optimal learning rule in the sense of mutual information maximization for a spiking neuron model. Under the assumption of small fluctuations of the input, we find a spike-timing dependent plas- ticity (STDP) function which depends on the time course of excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) and the autocorrelation function of the postsynaptic neuron. We show that the STDP function has both positive and negative phases. The positive phase is related to the shape of the EPSP while the negative phase is controlled by neuronal refractoriness.