Critical Thalamocortical Coordination Dynamics Track Conscious State Transitions
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) May 10, 2026 Diego Diniz Maia
A new theoretical framework proposes that conscious states correspond to metastable regimes of large-scale thalamocortical coordination near critical dynamical boundaries. The framework formalizes a dynamic coordination functional Φ(t), measurable from high-density EEG as a weighted combination of gamma-band power, thalamocortical coherence, and theta-gamma coupling. The thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) is identified as the anatomical control parameter governing proximity to the critical point, grounded in a Wilson-Cowan model. Numerical simulations show power-law recovery dynamics consistent with model A universality class (exponent ν between 0.5 and 1.5). The phase space of Φ(t) separates simulated waking, anaesthetic, ictal, and minimally conscious regimes without parameter fitting. Six falsifiable predictions across five experimental domains are derived, including specific EEG scaling exponents and TRN silencing effects.