Mean first-passage time of an active fluctuating membrane with stochastic resetting

We study the mean first-passage time of a one-dimensional active fluctuating membrane that is stochastically returned to the same flat initial condition at a finite rate. We start with a Fokker-Planck equation to describe the evolution of the membrane coupled with an Ornstein-Uhlenbeck type of active noise. Using the method of characteristics, we solve the equation and obtain the joint distribution of the membrane height and active noise. In order to obtain the mean first-passage time (MFPT), we further obtain a relation between the MFPT and a propagator that includes stochastic resetting. The derived relation is then used to calculate it analytically. Our studies show that the MFPT increases with a larger resetting rate and decreases with a smaller rate, i.e., there is an optimal resetting rate. We compare the results in terms of MFPT of the membrane with active and thermal noises for different membrane properties. The optimal resetting rate is much smaller with active noise compared to thermal. When the resetting rate is much lower than the optimal rate, we demonstrate how the MFPT scales with resetting rates, distance to the target, and the properties of the membranes.

Automated summary

We investigate the mean first-passage time (MFPT) of a one-dimensional active fluctuating membrane that is stochastically returned to the same flat initial condition at a finite rate. By using the Fokker-Planck equation and method of characteristics, we obtain the joint distribution of the membrane height and active noise, as well as a relation between MFPT and a propagator that includes stochastic resetting. We find that the MFPT increases with a larger resetting rate and decreases with a smaller rate, and there exists an optimal resetting rate. We compare the results of the MFPT with active and thermal noises for different membrane properties.