General presentation of the human ear
The ear transforms an acoustic pressure (stimulus) into an electrical impulse that is sent to the brain (perception).
The stimulus results from the ear drum being excited by a pressure variation in the air.
Step by step description of the animation:
A pressure difference in the air vibrates the ear drum: acoustic-mechanical transduction
These vibrations are transmitted via the ossicles (hammer, styrup and anvil) to the oval window of the cochlea.
One of the functions of the ossicles is to increase the energy transfer from the exterior (air medium) to a liquid medium in which sits the inner ear, and in particular, the cochlea (this is often called impedance matching)
What follows is the vibration of the organs of the inner ear, and in particular the specialised cells that transmit the information to the brain. This corresponds to a:
mechanical-electrical transduction.
