The universal Airy_1 and Airy_2 processes in the Totally Asymmetric Simple Exclusion Process

In the totally asymmetric simple exclusion process (TASEP) two processes arise in the large time limit: the Airy_1 and Airy_2 processes. The Airy_2 process is an universal limit process occurring also in other models: in a stochastic growth model on 1+1-dimensions, 2d last passage percolation, equilibrium crystals, and in random matrix diffusion. The Airy_1 and Airy_2 processes are defined and discussed in the context of the TASEP. We also explain a geometric representation of the TASEP from which the connection to growth models and directed last passage percolation is immediate.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figures, proceeding for the conference in honor of Percy Deift's 60th birthda

Fluctuations of the competition interface in presence of shocks

We consider last passage percolation (LPP) models with exponentially distributed random variables, which are linked to the totally asymmetric simple exclusion process (TASEP). The competition interface for LPP was introduced and studied by Ferrari and Pimentel in [Ann. Probab. 33 (2005), 1235-1254] for cases where the corresponding exclusion process had a rarefaction fan. Here we consider situations with a shock and determine the law of the fluctuations of the competition interface around its deterministic law of large number position. We also study the multipoint distribution of the LPP around the shock, extending our one-point result of [Probab. Theory Relat. Fields 61 (2015), 61-109].Comment: 33 pages, 4 figures, LaTe

On Time Correlations for KPZ Growth in One Dimension

Time correlations for KPZ growth in 1+1 dimensions are reconsidered. We discuss flat, curved, and stationary initial conditions and are interested in the covariance of the height as a function of time at a fixed point on the substrate. In each case the power laws of the covariance for short and long times are obtained. They are derived from a variational problem involving two independent Airy processes. For stationary initial conditions we derive an exact formula for the stationary covariance with two approaches: (1) the variational problem and (2) deriving the covariance of the time-integrated current at the origin for the corresponding driven lattice gas. In the stationary case we also derive the l arge time behavior for the covariance of the height gradients

Random Growth Models

The link between a particular class of growth processes and random matrices was established in the now famous 1999 article of Baik, Deift, and Johansson on the length of the longest increasing subsequence of a random permutation. During the past ten years, this connection has been worked out in detail and led to an improved understanding of the large scale properties of one-dimensional growth models. The reader will find a commented list of references at the end. Our objective is to provide an introduction highlighting random matrices. From the outset it should be emphasized that this connection is fragile. Only certain aspects, and only for specific models, the growth process can be reexpressed in terms of partition functions also appearing in random matrix theory.Comment: Review paper; 24 pages, 4 figures; Minor correction