We study a model of active particles that perform a simple random walk and on top of that have a preferred direction determined by an internal state which is modelled by a stationary Markov process. First we calculate the limiting diffusion coefficient. Then we show that the ‘active part’ of the diffusion coefficient is in some sense maximal for reversible state processes. Further, we obtain a large deviations principle for the active particle in terms of the large deviations rate function of the empirical process corresponding to the state process. Again we show that the rate function and free energy function are (pointwise) optimal for reversible state processes. Finally, we show that in the case with two states, the Fourier–Laplace transform of the distribution, the moment generating function and the free energy function can be computed explicitly. Along the way we provide several examples.

In this article we define the discrete Gaussian free field (DGFF) on a compact manifold. Since there is no canonical grid approximation of a manifold, we construct a random graph that suitably replaces the square lattice Z^d in Euclidean space, and prove that the scaling limit of the DGFF is given by the manifold continuum Gaussian free field (GFF). Furthermore using Voronoi tessellations we can interpret the DGFF as element of a Sobolev space and show convergence to the GFF in law with respect to the strong Sobolev topology.

We consider the symmetric exclusion process on suitable random grids that approximate a compact Riemannian manifold. We prove that a class of random walks on these random grids converge to Brownian motion on the manifold. We then consider the empirical density field of the symmetric exclusion process and prove that it converges to the solution of the heat equation on the manifold.