RESONANT DIFFUSION IN PERIODIC-SYSTEMS WITH MEMORY

The diffusion coefficient D in a periodic potential with exponentially decaying memory friction is studied by the matrix-continued-fraction method. it is shown that, at sufficiently high static friction, D pres ents a maximum as a function of the memory decay parameter. This maxim um is due to the interplay between two oscillatory motions, the first induced by the periodic potential and the second by the memory. The ma ximum appears when the frequencies of these motions are in resonance. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.