ABSTRACT
We now explore nonequilibrium statistical mechanics, a more microscopic perspective on physical kinetics. We use coin-flip statistics as the basis for the random-flight model of the possible trajectories of a single particle as it diffuses in time and space; for Fick’s law of diffusion; and for the Poisson and waiting-time distributions for the inter-arrival times of stochastic events. We also explore the individual stochastic trajectories of particles in A → B two-state dynamical processes. Bulk experiments measure averages over such trajectories, while single-molecule experiments can give you additional information about the individual trajectories themselves and the fluctuations, which are the dynamical deviations away from the averages.
