Ballistic annihilation in one dimension: a critical review

In this article, we review the problem of reaction annihilation A + A → ∅ on a real lattice in one dimension, where A particles move ballistically in one direction with a discrete set of possible velocities. We first discuss the case of pure ballistic annihilation, that is a model in which each particle moves simultaneously at constant speed. We then review ballistic annihilation with superimposed diffusion in one dimension. This model consists of diffusing particles each of which diffuses with a fixed bias, which can be either positive or negative with probability 1/2, and annihilate upon contact. When the initial concentration of left- and right-moving particles is same, the concentration c ( t ) decays as t - 1 / 2 with time, for pure ballistic annihilation. However, when the diffusion is superimposed decay is faster and the concentration c ( t ) ∼ t - 3 / 4 . We also discuss the nearest-neighbor distance distribution as well as crossover behavior. Graphical Abstract