Brownian motion from a deterministic system of particles

Vincent Ardourel (1)

1 IHPST - Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et des Techniques

Can Brownian motion arise from a deterministic system of particles? This paper addresses this question by analysing the derivation of Brownian motion as the limit of a deterministic hard-spheres gas with Lanford's theorem. In particular, we examine the role of the Boltzmann-Grad limit in the loss of memory of the deterministic system and compare this derivation and the derivation of Brownian motion with the Langevin equation.

Domaines: Histoire, Philosophie et Sociologie des sciences

Vincent Ardourel. Brownian motion from a deterministic system of particles. Synthese, 2022, 200 (29), pp.1-15. ⟨10.1007/s11229-022-03577-2⟩. ⟨hal-03520187⟩