Smoothly varying hopping rates in driven flow with exclusion

We consider the one-dimensional totally asymmetric simple exclusion process (TASEP) with position-dependent hopping rates. The problem is solved, in a mean-field adiabatic approximation, for a general (smooth) form of spatial rate variation. Numerical simulations of systems with hopping rates varying linearly against position (constant rate gradient), for both periodic and open-boundary conditions, provide detailed confirmation of theoretical predictions, concerning steady-state average density profiles and currents, as well as open-system phase boundaries, to excellent numerical accuracy.