Diffusing Diffusivity: Survival in a Crowded Rearranging and Bounded Domain.

Abstract

We consider a particle diffusing in a bounded, crowded, rearranging medium. The rearrangement happens on a time scale longer than the typical time scale of diffusion of the particle; as a result, effectively, the diffusion coefficient of the particle varies as a stochastic function of time. What is the probability that the particle will survive within the bounded region, given that it is absorbed the first time it hits the boundary of the region in which it diffuses? This question is of great interest in a variety of chemical and biological problems. If the diffusion coefficient is a constant, then analytical solutions for a variety of cases are available in the literature. However, there is no solution available for the case in which the diffusion coefficient is a random function of time. We discuss a class of models for which it is possible to find analytical solutions to the problem. We illustrate the method for a circular, two-dimensional region, but our methods are easy to apply to diffusion in arbitrary dimensions and spherical/rectangular regions. Our solution shows that if the dimension of the region is large, then only the average value of the diffusion coefficient determines the survival probability. However, for smaller-sized regions, one would be able to see the effects of the stochasticity of the diffusion coefficient. We also give generalizations of the results to N dimensions.