Large-Scale Collective Properties of Self-Propelled Rods

Francesco Ginelli (1, 2) , Fernando Peruani (1) , Markus Baer (3) , Hugues Chaté (1)

1 SPEC - UMR3680 - Service de physique de l'état condensé
2 ISC-PIF - Institut des Systèmes Complexes - Paris Ile-de-France
3 PTB - Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt [Berlin]

We study, in two space dimensions, the collective properties of constant-speed polar point particles interacting locally by nematic alignment in the presence of noise. This minimal approach to self-propelled rods allows one to deal with large numbers of particles, which exhibit a rich phenomenology distinctively different from all other known models for self-propelled particles. Extensive simulations reveal long-range nematic order, phase separation, and space-time chaos mediated by large-scale segregated structures.

Domaines: Biophysique [physics.bio-ph]

Francesco Ginelli, Fernando Peruani, Markus Baer, Hugues Chaté. Large-Scale Collective Properties of Self-Propelled Rods. Physical Review Letters, 2010, 104 (18), pp.184502. ⟨10.1103/PhysRevLett.104.184502⟩. ⟨hal-00905223⟩