Stationary states of an active Brownian particle in a harmonic trap

Abstract: We study the stationary states of an over-damped active Brownian particle (ABP) in a harmonic trap in two dimensions, via mathematical calculations and numerical simulations. In addition to translational diffusion, the ABP self-propels with a certain velocity, whose magnitude is constant, but its direction is subject to Brownian rotation. In the limit where translational diffusion is negligible, the stationary distribution of the particle's position shows a transition between two different shapes, one with maximum and the other with minimum density at the centre, as the trap stiffness is increased. We show that this non-intuitive behaviour is captured by the relevant Fokker-Planck equation, which, under minimal assumptions, predicts a continuous ``phase transition" between the two different shapes. As the translational diffusion coefficient is increased, both these distributions converge into the equilibrium, Boltzmann form. Our simulations support the analytical predictions, and also show that the probability distribution of the orientation angle of the self-propulsion velocity undergoes a transition from unimodal to bimodal forms in this limit. We also extend our simulations to a three dimensional trap, and find similar behaviour.