title: Directed transport of confined Brownian particles with torque.
abstract: We investigate the influence of an additional torque on the motion of Brownian particles confined in a channel geometry with varying width. The particles are driven by random fluctuations modeled by an Ornstein-Uhlenbeck process with given correlation time τ_{c}. The latter causes persistent motion and is implemented as (i) thermal noise in equilibrium and (ii) noisy propulsion in nonequilibrium. In the nonthermal process a directed transport emerges; its properties are studied in detail with respect to the correlation time, the torque, and the channel geometry. Eventually, the transport mechanism is traced back to a persistent sliding of particles along the even boundaries in contrast to scattered motion at uneven or rough ones.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Newtonstraße 15, 12489 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Paul K
authors.initials: PK
authors.lastname: Radtke
authors.forename: Lutz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schimansky-Geier