On the definition of a diffusion constant in a nonequilibrium system

A diffusion constant for electrons in a current-carrying semiconductor can be unambiguously defined in nearly uniform systems. For frequency-dependent density gradients it is $$D_{\alpha \beta } (\omega ) \equiv \int\limits_0^\infty {dt e^{i\omega t} \overline {\Delta \upsilon _\alpha (t)\Delta \upsilon _\beta (0),} } $$ where \(\overline {\Delta \upsilon _\alpha (t)\Delta \upsilon _\beta (0)} \) is the velocity correlation function with respect to the steady state in a bias field. This result has been elucidated in the relaxation approximation by different approaches to the diffusion problem. Essential for its derivation is a statistical independence assumption of space and velocities, and in order to get a classical diffusion law of Fick's type certain velocities have to be distributed according to the steady state in a bias field. Diffusion constant and noise temperature are discussed for a few band structures in the relaxation approximation.