dc-biased stationary transport in the absence of dissipation

Abstract

We obtain stationary transport in a Hamiltonian system with ac driving in the presence of a dc bias. A particle in a periodic potential under the influence of a time-periodic field possesses a mixed phase space with regular and chaotic components. An additional external dc bias allows to separate effectively these structures. We show the existence of a stationary current which originates from the persisting invariant manifolds (regular islands, periodic orbits, and cantori). The transient dynamics of the accelerated chaotic domain separates fast chaotic motion from ballistic type trajectories which stick to the vicinity of the invariant submanifold. Experimental studies with cold atoms in laser-induced optical lattices are ideal candidates for the observation of these unexpected findings.