Coarse-graining of overdamped Langevin dynamics via the Mori-Zwanzig formalism

Abstract

The Mori-Zwanzig formalism is applied to derive an equation for the evolution of linear observables of the overdamped Langevin equation. To illustrate the resulting equation and its use in deriving approximate models, a particular benchmark example is studied both numerically and via a formal asymptotic expansion. The example considered demonstrates the important of memory effects in determining the correct temporal behaviour of such systems.