Model of lateral diffusion in ultrathin layered films

We consider the diffusion of markers in a layered medium, with the lateral diffusion coefficient being the function of hight. We show that the probability density of the lateral displacements follows a one-dimensional Batchelor’s equation with time-dependent diffusion coefficient governed by the particles’ redistribution in height. For the film of a finite thickness the resulting mean squared displacement exhibits superdiffusion at short times and crosses over to normal diffusion at long times. The approach is used for a description of experimental results on inhomogeneous molecular diffusion in thin liquid films deposited on solid surfaces.