- Abstract
We study the random walk of a particle in a compartmentalized environment, as realized in biological samples or solid state compounds. Each compartment is characterized by its length L and the boundaries transmittance T. We identify two relevant spatio-temporal scales that provide alternative descriptions of the dynamics: (i) the microscale, in which the particle position is monitored at constant time intervals; and (ii) the mesoscale, in which it is monitored only when the particle crosses a boundary between compartments. Both descriptions provide—by construction—the same long time behavior. The analytical description obtained at the proposed mesoscale allows for a complete characterization of the complex movement at the microscale, thus representing a fruitful approach for this kind of systems. We show that the presence of disorder in the transmittance is a necessary condition to induce anomalous diffusion, whereas the spatial heterogeneity reduces the degree of subdiffusion and, in some cases, can even compensate for the disorder induced by the stochastic transmittance.
- Authors
- G. Muñoz-Gil, M. Lewenstein, A. Celi, C. Manzo, i M. A. Garcia-March
- Citation Key
- 318
- COinS Data
- Date Published
- 2019-06-07 08:27
- DOI
- 10.3389/fphy.2019.00031
- ISSN
- 2296-424X
- Pagination
- 31
- Journal
- Frontiers in Physics
- URL
- https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fphy.2019.00031
- Volume
- 7
- Year of Publication
- 2019