Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Abstract: We analyze the transport of rod-like particles by diffusion and drift in a three-dimensional channel with varying circular or elliptic cross section. Applying the Fick-Jacobs approximation to the transport equation of the particles' probability distribution, we derive an effective one-dimensional substitute model and the associated free energy profile. Our results show that the data for the mean first passage time of rods, once expressed as a function of the effective free energy barrier, collapse onto the same master curve as obtained for point or spherical particles. The observed universality provides a simple framework for predicting transport times of anisotropic particles in confined geometries without resolving the full multidimensional dynamics.
Source: arXiv (Cornell University)
Authors: Ray, N., Semkiv, A., Harting, J., Malgaretti, P.
Language: English
Subfield: Biomedical Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
OpenAlex ID: W7214365022