TASEP hydrodynamics using microscopic characteristics

Abstract

The convergence of the totally asymmetric simple exclusion process to the solution of the Burgers equation is a classical result. In his seminal 1981 paper, Herman Rost proved the convergence of the density fields and local equilibrium when the limiting solution of the equation is a rarefaction fan. An important tool of his proof is the subadditive ergodic theorem. We prove his results by showing how second class particles transport the rarefaction-fan solution, as characteristics do for the Burgers equation, avoiding subadditivity. Along the way we show laws of large numbers for tagged particles, fluxes and second class particles, and simplify existing proofs in the shock cases. The presentation is self contained.