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RESEARCH PRODUCT
Effective Cahn-Hilliard Equation for the Phase Separation of Active Brownian Particles
Andreas M. MenzelJulian BialkéThomas SpeckHartmut Löwensubject
PhysicsStatistical Mechanics (cond-mat.stat-mech)NucleationFOS: Physical sciencesGeneral Physics and AstronomyCondensed Matter - Soft Condensed MatterKinetic energyInstabilitySeparation processPhase (matter)Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)Statistical physicsCahn–Hilliard equationCluster analysisCondensed Matter - Statistical MechanicsBrownian motiondescription
The kinetic separation of repulsive active Brownian particles into a dense and a dilute phase is analyzed using a systematic coarse-graining strategy. We derive an effective Cahn-Hilliard equation on large length and time scales, which implies that the separation process can be mapped onto that of passive particles. A lower density threshold for clustering is found, and using our approach we demonstrate that clustering first proceeds via a hysteretic nucleation scenario and above a higher threshold changes into a spinodal-like instability. Our results are in agreement with particle-resolved computer simulations and can be verified in experiments of artificial or biological microswimmers.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-05-29 | Physical Review Letters |