Within and Between Subject Spectral Fingerprints of EEG-Microstate Parameters

Abstract Early reports have claimed that EEG microstate features (e.g. their mean duration or percent of time covered) are largely independent from EEG spectra. This has meanwhile been questioned for conceptual and empirical reasons, but so far, EEG spectral power map correlates of microstate features have not been reported. We present the results of such analyses, conducted both within and between subjects, and report patterns of systematic changes in local EEG spectral amplitude associated with the mean duration, frequency of occurrence and relative contribution of particular microstate classes. The combination of EEG microstate analysis with spectral analysis may therefore be helpful to come to a deeper understanding of local patterns of activation and inhibition associated with particular microstate classes.