Rate calculation in two-dimensional barriers with colored noise

Abstract

Abstract. The identification of an optimal dividing surface that is free of recrossings is the most important requirement for transition state theory to be exact. This task is particularly difficult in the presence of non-Markovian friction, i.e., colored noise forces. In this paper, we report a novel geometric method that circumvents the recrossing problem and is able to (i) identify reactive trajectories exactly, and (ii) compute reaction rates in a system with two degrees of freedom driven by non-Markovian friction. The extension of our method to higher dimensional systems is also discussed.