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Updated: Apr 12, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
Published on: December 4, 2017
Collective dynamics in a binary mixture of hydrodynamically coupled microrotors
Kyongmin Yeo1,2, Enkeleida Lushi3, Petia M Vlahovska3
1IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, New York 10598, USA.
Abstract:
We study, numerically, the collective dynamics of self-rotating nonaligning particles by considering a monolayer of spheres driven by constant clockwise or counterclockwise torques. We show that hydrodynamic interactions alter the emergence of large-scale dynamical patterns compared to those observed in dry systems. In dilute suspensions, the flow stirred by the rotors induces clustering of opposite-spin rotors, while at higher densities same-spin rotors phase separate. Above a critical rotor density, dynamic hexagonal crystals form. Our findings underscore the importance of inclusion of the many-body, long-range hydrodynamic interactions in predicting the phase behavior of active particles.
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