  The difference between boson and fermion dynamics in quasi-one-dimensional
lattices is studied with exact simulations of particle motion and by
calculating the persistent current in small quantum rings. We consider three
different lattices which in the tight binding model exhibit flat bands. The
physical realization is considered to be an optical lattice with bosonic or
fermionic atoms. The atoms are assumed to interact with a repulsive short range
interaction. The different statistics of bosons and fermions causes different
dynamics. Spinless fermions are easily trapped in the flat band states due to
the Pauli exclusion principle, which prevents them from interacting, while
boson are able to push each other out from the flat band states.
