Reliability of fluctuation-induced transport in a Maxwell-demon-type engine

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the transport behavior of an overdamped Brownian particle influenced by two thermal baths, deriving analytical expressions for velocity and diffusion, and assessing transport coherence via the Péclet number.

Contribution

It provides analytical formulas for particle velocity and diffusion in a two-bath system and evaluates transport reliability using the Péclet number.

Findings

Transport is generally not very coherent.

Higher particle currents can be achieved.

Transport reliability varies with system parameters.

Abstract

We study the transport properties of an overdamped Brownian particle which is simultaneously in contact with two thermal baths. The first bath is modeled by an additive thermal noise at temperature $T_A$. The second bath is associated with a multiplicative thermal noise at temperature $T_B$. The analytical expressions for the particle velocity and diffusion constant are derived for this system, and the reliability or coherence of transport is analyzed by means of their ratio in terms of a dimensionless P\'{e}clet number. We find that the transport is not very coherent, though one can get significantly higher currents.