Colossal Brownian yet non-Gaussian diffusion induced by nonequilibrium noise

Abstract

We report on novel Brownian, yet non-Gaussian diffusion, in which the mean square displacement of the particle grows linearly with time, the probability density for the particle spreading is Gaussian-like, however, the probability density for its position increments possesses an exponentially decaying tail. In contrast to recent works in this area, this behaviour is not a consequence of either a space or time-dependent diffusivity, but is induced by external non-thermal noise acting on the particle dwelling in a periodic potential. The existence of the exponential tail in the increment statistics leads to colossal enhancement of diffusion, surpassing drastically the previously researched situation known under the label of "giant" diffusion. This colossal diffusion enhancement crucially impacts a broad spectrum of the first arrival problems, such as diffusion limited reactions governing transport in living cells.