Diagrammatic kinetic theory for a lattice model of a liquid. II. Comparison of theory and simulation results.

We compare the predictions of the mean field, the two site multiple scattering, and the simple mode coupling approximation developed in the previous paper for the dynamics of a tagged particle in an excluded volume lattice gas with the results of computer simulations. The tagged particle has a transition rate of gamma while the background particles have transition rates of alphagamma. We consider the tracer diffusion coefficient and the incoherent intermediate scattering function (IISF) for low, intermediate, and high concentrations of particles and for simple square and cubic lattices. In general, the approximate kinetic theories are more accurate in predicting simulations results at low concentrations, high dimensions, and large alpha. For the tracer diffusion coefficient, the mean field approximation is the least accurate, the two site multiple scattering approximation is more accurate, and the simple mode coupling approximation is the most accurate; all three approximate theories overestimate the simulation results. For the IISF, the mean field approximation is quantitatively accurate in the limit of small concentration and large alpha but in general decays too quickly. The two site multiple scattering approximation is quantitatively accurate at low and intermediate concentrations for large wave vectors; it is always more accurate than the mean field approximation and always decays more quickly than the simulation results. The simple mode coupling approximation is the most accurate of the three approximations in most cases and especially so for small wave vectors, high concentration, and small alpha; unfortunately, its predictions are not quantitatively accurate in these highly nonmean field regimes. We discuss the implications of these results for developing diagrammatic kinetic theories. (c) 2004 American Institute of Physics