Boundary-Mediated Phases and Energy Transfer of Self-Propelled Aligning Particles

by Dr Francesco Arceri (DFA UniPD)

Tuesday 16 Jun 2026, 12:00 → 13:00 Europe/Rome

P2C (Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia - Edificio Paolotti)

This talk starts the BioSoft@UNIPD seminar series, which brings together the soft matter and biophysics community of the Department of Physics and Astronomy (DFA) at the University of Padua, focusing on experimental and theoretical advances. Check out the calendar of upcoming seminars here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Lwer76YmE11IhuvkLbehhgGR4V03mGQwxWAayklhwR0/edit?gid=0#gid=0.

Boundary-Mediated Phases and Energy Transfer of Self-Propelled Aligning Particles

Active agents can reshape their environment by exerting mechanical work through collective motion. In this talk, I will focus on the optimal conditions for mechanical work transfer in confined active matter using a minimal model of self-propelled particles with aligning interactions described by the Kuramoto interaction. I will first consider particles confined by reflective boundaries, and systematically identify distinct dynamical regimes arising from the interplay between self-propulsion and synchronization. I will then introduce frictional rigid boundaries and directly quantify the transferred angular momentum from the active medium to its surroundings. By letting the boundary rotate around its center, its rotational kinetic energy becomes a direct estimation of work performed by the active particles. These results demonstrate that both collective alignment and motility regulate the efficiency of energy transfer, with optimal conditions emerging from a nontrivial balance between coherence and persistent motion.