Mathematical Sciences Department Applied Math Seminar
Jack-William Barotta, Brown University
Thursday, April 17th
12:00pm - 1:00 pm
Title: Wave-driven propulsion and synchronization of interfacial chiral active matter
Abstract: Collective motion refers to emergent order in populations of interacting agents, observed across scales - from microscopic bacterial flocks to macroscopic starling murmurations. While most studies have focused on particles that only translate, recent interest has shifted to chiral active matter: self-propelled agents that exhibit both translational and rotational motion. Chiral active matter displays distinctive collective dynamics, influenced by factors such as particle shape, rotation rate, and orientation. I will present a tunable model of chiral active particles on a vibrating liquid interface, where motion is induced by capillary wave generation, supported by a companion tabletop experiment. I develop a model describing the coupling between particle shape and the self-generated wavefield to explain the persistent rotation observed at the single-particle level. When considering interactions between multiple spinners, the system behaves like coupled phase oscillators, with synchronization emerging through hydrodynamic interactions mediated by their capillary wavefields. Using agent-based simulations, I explore these interactions from first principles, uncovering various modes of static and dynamic synchronization, drawing parallels to canonical synchronization models.