Fractional Diffusion: A Structured Approach to Application with Examples

Time-fractional evolution equations for probability distributions provide a means of representing an important class of stochastic processes. Their solutions have features that are important in modeling anomalous diffusion and a variety of other real-world applications, like the search patterns of predators or queuing problems. However, these equations are usually not included in current physics education, as the underlying mathematics might be considered too advanced. In the following, we present a novel approach to understanding time-fractional diffusion equations and their solutions for practical applications. This approach shifts the focus to the physical rather than the in-depth mathematical properties typically studied for this topic. We introduce the fractional differential operator simply as an identity operation on generalizations of exponential functions. This shifts the emphasis to the actual functions of fractional derivatives instead of what they are. This concept is applied to a discrete one-dimensional time-fractional diffusion equation on a finite interval modeling anomalous subdiffusion. Examples and tasks are provided for readers to allow interactive learning.