Recent advances in the study of artificial and biological nano-systems have revealed that these two topics have in common more fundamental physical aspects than one would expect from the vastly different compositions, structures and functions of these systems. The prevalent strong interaction of the functional parts of both types of systems with their respective environments impose strong fluctuations and therefore most often render standard theoretical approaches like weak coupling theories inadequate. The functional aspects of artificial as well as biological systems generally rely on non-equilibrium conditions which may be imposed by chemical or electrical potential differences, or also by temperature differences. A time dependent external driving exhibits yet another non-equilibrium scenario.
The investigation of transport properties of charges, heat, or particles under strong non-equilibrium conditions in the presence of strong noise has been rich in surprising results and continues to present a lively field of research. While the relevance of quantum mechanics for charge transport in artificial nano-systems is well established, and also recent experiments with nano-mechanical systems have approached the quantum regime, the role of quantum mechanics for biological systems is still controversial.
The purpose of the workshop is to bring together leading experts from different topical research areas such as biophysics, quantum mechanics of nano-systems and transport processes, and to provide a stimulating scientific environment. It is our hope that the interactions among the participants will contribute to a deeper understanding of the fundamental role of noise.
