Effects of thermal modulation on tunneling through a fluctuating barrier in presence of bichromatic electromagnetic field

The effects of thermal modulation on the tunneling dynamics of a particle moving in a bistable potential with a fluctuating barrier in the presence of bichromatic electromagnetic field are examined. This study brings to light various interesting features. While rate constant increases steadily with increasing fluctuation strength, a stochastic resonance‐like behavior is exhibited when tunneling rate is plotted as a function of barrier fluctuation frequency. The tunneling rate constant decreases with the increase in the differences of the strength of the two electric fields; on the other hand, it displays a maxima when plotted as a function of the ratio of the frequencies of the two fields. When the rate constant is plotted as a function of temperature, it increases and eventually settles down to a saturation value. We have also studied the effect of the phase difference between the two electric fields on the tunneling behavior in the presence of thermal modulation. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2005