Hierarchical Lorentz mirror model: Normal transport and a universal 2/3 mean-variance law

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Authors: R. Lefevere, Hal Tasaki
Cited by: 0

Abstract

The Lorentz mirror model provides a clean setting to study macroscopic transport generated solely by quenched environmental randomness. We introduce a hierarchical version whose distribution of left--right crossings satisfies an exact recursion. In dimensions $d\ge3$, we prove two-sided bounds that support normal transport: the mean conductance scales as (cross-section)/(length). A Gaussian closure, supported by numerics, predicts that the variance-to-mean ratio of the dimensionless conductance converges to the universal value $2/3$ for all $d\ge2$ (the ``$2/3$ law''). We provide numerical evidence for the $2/3$ law in the original (non-hierarchical) Lorentz mirror model in $d=3$, and conjecture that it is a universal signature of normal transport induced by random current matching. In the marginal case $d=2$, our hierarchical recursion reproduces the known scaling of the mean and variance of conductance. A YouTube video discussing the background and the main results of the paper is available: https://youtu.be/G1nqKd6MiXo

Fields of Study & Subjects

Stochastic processes and statistical mechanics Spectral Theory in Mathematical Physics Quantum and electron transport phenomena

Publication details

Journal / source
Physical Review Letters
Publication date
27 October 2026
Language
EN