The effective diffusion coefficient for the overdamped Brownian motion in a tilted periodic potential is calculated in closed analytical form. Universality classes and scaling properties for weak thermal noise are identified near the threshold tilt where deterministic running solutions set in. In this regime the diffusion may be greatly enhanced, as compared to free thermal diffusion with, for a realistic experimental setup, an enhancement of up to 14 orders of magnitude.

We report that liquids perform self-propelled motion when they are placed in contact with hot surfaces with asymmetric (ratchetlike) topology. The pumping effect is observed when the liquid is in the Leidenfrost regime (the film-boiling regime), for many liquids and over a wide temperature range. We propose that liquid motion is driven by a viscous force exerted by vapor flow between the solid and the liquid.

Brownian heat engines use local temperature gradients in asymmetric potentials to move particles against an external force. The energy efficiency of such machines is generally limited by irreversible heat flow carried by particles that make contact with different heat baths. Here we show that, by using a suitably chosen energy filter, electrons can be transferred reversibly between reservoirs that have different temperatures and electrochemical potentials. We apply this result to propose heat engines based on mesoscopic semiconductor ratchets, which can quasistatically operate arbitrarily close to Carnot efficiency.