Embedding quasicrystals in a periodic cell: dynamics in quasiperiodic structures

Phys Rev Lett. 2013 Sep 20;111(12):125501. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.125501. Epub 2013 Sep 18.

Abstract

We introduce a construction to "periodize" a quasiperiodic lattice of obstacles, i.e., embed it into a unit cell in a higher-dimensional space, reversing the projection method used to form quasilattices. This gives an algorithm for simulating dynamics, as well as a natural notion of uniform distribution, in quasiperiodic structures. It also shows the generic existence of channels, where particles travel without colliding, up to a critical obstacle radius, which we calculate for a Penrose tiling. As an application, we find superdiffusion in the presence of channels, and a subdiffusive regime when obstacles overlap.