Collective dynamics and motility-induced phase separation in narrow channels

Characterize the impacts of particle-wall alignment interactions on motility-induced phase separation and flocking of dense active-particle suspensions confined to narrow channels.

Background

The analysis is restricted to dilute suspensions, where interparticle interactions are neglected. The authors note that dense active suspensions can undergo motility-induced phase separation and that confinement can induce such phase separation even without particle-wall alignment interactions. Because alignment interactions may detain particles near channel boundaries for long periods, their effects on collective phenomena, including motility-induced phase separation and flocking, remain unresolved.