Diffusion/Subdiffusion in the Pushy Random Walk

Fuente: arXiv
Salvato in:
Dettagli Bibliografici
Autori principali: Bonomo, Ofek Lauber, Shitrit, Itamar, Reuveni, Shlomi, Redner, Sidney
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2026
Soggetti:
Accesso online:
Tags: Aggiungi Tag
Nessun Tag, puoi essere il primo ad aggiungerne!!
_version_ 1866911568277536768
author Bonomo, Ofek Lauber
Shitrit, Itamar
Reuveni, Shlomi
Redner, Sidney
author_facet Bonomo, Ofek Lauber
Shitrit, Itamar
Reuveni, Shlomi
Redner, Sidney
contents We introduce the pushy random walk, where a walker can push multiple obstacles, thereby penetrating large distances in environments with finite obstacle density. This process provides a minimal model for experimentally observed interactions of active particles with dense, deformable media. Using scaling arguments and numerical simulations, we show that in one dimension the walker carves out an obstacle-free cavity whose length grows subdiffusively over time. In two dimensions, increasing obstacle density drives a transition from free diffusion to localized behavior, where the walker is trapped within a cavity whose radius again grows subdiffusively with time. These results show how tracer-induced rearrangements qualitatively reshape transport in crowded media and provide a minimal framework for describing diffusion in deformable environments.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2602_07387
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Diffusion/Subdiffusion in the Pushy Random Walk
Bonomo, Ofek Lauber
Shitrit, Itamar
Reuveni, Shlomi
Redner, Sidney
Statistical Mechanics
We introduce the pushy random walk, where a walker can push multiple obstacles, thereby penetrating large distances in environments with finite obstacle density. This process provides a minimal model for experimentally observed interactions of active particles with dense, deformable media. Using scaling arguments and numerical simulations, we show that in one dimension the walker carves out an obstacle-free cavity whose length grows subdiffusively over time. In two dimensions, increasing obstacle density drives a transition from free diffusion to localized behavior, where the walker is trapped within a cavity whose radius again grows subdiffusively with time. These results show how tracer-induced rearrangements qualitatively reshape transport in crowded media and provide a minimal framework for describing diffusion in deformable environments.
title Diffusion/Subdiffusion in the Pushy Random Walk
topic Statistical Mechanics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.07387