On correlations and fluctuations of time-averaged densities and currents with general time-dependence

TL;DR

This paper develops theoretical tools to analyze correlations and fluctuations of time-averaged densities and currents in diffusion processes with arbitrary time dependence, extending previous results to more general settings including transient and non-ergodic systems.

Contribution

It generalizes existing fluctuation and correlation results to include additive functionals with explicit time dependence and non-stationary diffusion processes.

Findings

Extended fluctuation relations to non-stationary diffusion.

Applied results to 2D harmonic diffusion in rotational flow.

Demonstrated analysis of transient and non-ergodic systems.

Abstract

We present technical results required for the description and understanding of correlations and fluctuations of the empirical density and current as well as diverse time-integrated and time-averaged thermodynamic currents of diffusion processes with a general time dependence on all time scales. In particular, we generalize the results from arXiv:2105.10483 (Phys. Rev. Lett., article in press), arXiv:2204.06553 (Phys. Rev. Research, article in press), and arXiv:2206.04034 to additive functionals with explicit time dependence and transient or non-ergodic overdamped diffusion. As an illustration we apply the results to two-dimensional harmonically confined overdamped diffusion in a rotational flow evolving from a non-stationary initial distribution.