Deterministic inhomogeneous inertia ratchets

We study the deterministic dynamics of a periodically driven particle in the underdamped case in a spatially symmetric periodic potential. The system is subjected to a space-dependent friction coefficient, which is similarly periodic as the potential but with a phase difference. We observe that frictional inhomogeneity in a symmetric periodic potential mimics most of the qualitative features of deterministic dynamics in a homogeneous system with an asymmetric periodic potential. We point out the need of averaging over the initial phase of the external drive at small frictional inhomogeneity parameter values or analogously low potential asymmetry regimes in obtaining ratchet current. We also show that at low amplitudes of the drive, where ratchet current is not possible in the deterministic case, noise plays a significant role in realizing ratchet current.Comment: 15 pages, 15 figure

Two-Well System under Large Amplitude Periodic Forcing: Stochastic Synchronization, Stochastic Resonance and Stability

We study the residence time distributions and explore the possibility of observing stochastic resonance and synchonization of passages in a two-well system driven by a periodic forcing of amplitude larger than a marginal value beyond which one of the two wells become unstable and diasppear. We define and calculate hysteresis loop in the system, the area of which measures the degree of synchronization between the residence time statistics and the input signal, as a function of input noise strength. We analyse the noise induced stability obtained in such a deterministically overall unstable system and within this context discuss the above two phenomena.Comment: Mod. Phys. Lett. B 1997, in print, figures available on reques

AC driven thermal ratchets

We consider the motion of a overdamped Brownian particle in periodic asymmetric potential with space dependent friction coefficient. In the presence of external time periodic forcing, the system shows multiple current reversals on varying the amplitude of the external forcing and the temperature of the thermal bath. In the adiabatic regime we find a single reversal of current as a function of noise strength which can only be accounted due to the presence of space dependent friction coefficient. For very large forcing term, the current does not go to zero, instead it asymptotically tends to a limiting value depending on the phase shift between the potential and the friction. This fact plays an important role in obtaining multiple current reversals.Comment: 4 pages, latex/revtex, 4 eps figures. Proceedings of CMDAYS2K, held at Guru Ghasidas University, Bilaspur, Chattisgarh, India, Aug 29-31, 2