ABSTRACT
One of the most important problems in bioelectric theory is the calculation of the electrical potential, throughout a volume conductor. This chapter aims to characterize the electrical conductivity. Dielectric properties arise from bound charge that is displaced by the electric field, creating a dipole. They can also arise if the applied electric field aligns molecular dipoles that normally are oriented randomly. The earliest and simplest model describing the electrical conductivity of a biological tissue is a suspension of cells in a saline solution. Many of the most interesting electrically active tissues, such as nerve and skeletal muscle, are better approximated as a suspension of cylinders rather than a suspension of spheres.
