Abstract
We consider the motion of a heavy particle in interaction with an infinite ideal gas of slow atoms. We prove that the velocity of the heavy particle is, in a suitable limit, modeled by a deterministic process. We also treat the process of rescaled velocity fluctuations around a certain deterministic motion and show that this is appropriately modeled by a nonhomogeneous diffusion process.
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Supported in part by NSF grants PHY-8201708 and DMR81-14726.
Supported in part by NSF grant PHY-8003298 and the Seton Hall University, Research and Faculty Development Council.
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Goldstein, S., Guetti, J. On the diffusion of a fast molecule. J Stat Phys 43, 321–341 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01010585
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01010585