Rotational propulsion enabled by inertia

Elasticity-induced force reversal between active spinning particles in dense passive media

The self-organization of active particles is governed by their dynamic effective interactions. Such interactions are controlled by the medium in which such active agents reside. Here we study the interactions between active agents in a dense non-active medium. Our system consists of actuated, spinning, active particles embedded in a dense monolayer of passive, or non-active, particles. We demonstrate that the presence of the passive monolayer alters markedly the properties of the system and results in a reversal of the forces between active spinning particles from repulsive to attractive. The origin of such reversal is due to the coupling between the active stresses and elasticity of the system. This discovery provides a mechanism for the interaction between active agents in complex and structured media, opening up opportunities to tune the interaction range and directionality via the mechanical properties of the medium.

Physics out-of-equilibrium is necessary to understand a variety of interactions, for example in biological systems. Here, the authors show that the interactions between non-Brownian active spinning particles can change from repulsive to attractive depending on the properties of the surrounding passive medium.