東京大学 · 物理学・天文学
奈良先端科学技術大学院大学の西口大樹教授の研究室では、自己駆動粒子から成るアクティブマターの集団運動を、実験的・理論的・数値的アプローチで解明しています。特に、幾何的制約や流体の強い閉じ込めが、非平衡系における秩序の形成やメソスコピックな乱流をどのように制御するかに注目しています。細菌の集団運動から生じる長距離秩序や、トポロジカルな欠陥の制御、そして人工的障害物によるパターン形成のメカニズムを解明しています。
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
We study the collective dynamics of elongated swimmers in a very thin fluid layer by devising long filamentous nontumbling bacteria. The strong confinement induces weak nematic alignment upon collision, which, for large enough density of cells, gives rise to global nematic order. This homogeneous but fluctuating phase, observed on the largest experimentally accessible scale of millimeters, exhibits the properties predicted by standard models for flocking, such as the Vicsek-style model of polar
To elucidate mechanisms of mesoscopic turbulence exhibited by active particles, we experimentally study turbulent states of nonliving self-propelled particles. We realize an experimental system with dense suspensions of asymmetrical colloidal particles (Janus particles) self-propelling on a two-dimensional surface under an ac electric field. Velocity fields of the Janus particles in the crowded situation can be regarded as a sort of turbulence because it contains many vortices and their velociti
A suspension of swimming bacteria is possibly the simplest realization of active matter, i.e. a class of systems transducing stored energy into mechanical motion. Collective swimming of hydrodynamically interacting bacteria resembles turbulent flow. This seemingly chaotic motion can be rectified by a geometrical confinement. Here we report on self-organization of a concentrated suspension of motile bacteria Bacillus subtilis constrained by two-dimensional (2D) periodic arrays of microscopic vert
Abstract Recent experiments have shown that the complex spatio-temporal vortex structures emerging in active fluids are susceptible to weak geometrical constraints. This observation poses the fundamental question of how boundary effects stabilize a highly ordered pattern from seemingly turbulent motion. Here we show, by a combination of continuum theory and experiments on a bacterial suspension, how artificial obstacles guide the flow profile and reorganize topological defects, which enables the
Emergent order resulting from spontaneous symmetry breakings has been a central topic in statistical physics. Active matter systems composed of nonequilibrium elements exhibit a diverse range of fascinating phenomena beyond equilibrium physics. One striking example is the emergent long-range orientational order in two dimensions, which is prohibited in equilibrium systems. The existence of long-range order in active matter systems was predicted first by a numerical model and proven analytically
Active turbulence, or chaotic self-organized collective motion, is often observed in concentrated suspensions of motile bacteria and other systems of self-propelled interacting agents. To date, there is no fundamental understanding of how geometrical confinement orchestrates active turbulence and alters its physical properties. Here, by combining large-scale experiments, computer modeling, and analytical theory, we have identified a generic sequence of transitions occurring in bacterial suspensi
The original version of this Article contained errors in Fig. 2. In Fig. 2d, the label below the blue circle incorrectly read "S<sub>i,a</sub>(t) < 0" and should have read "S<sub>i,a</sub>(t) > 0". Furthermore, the sequence of labels on the side of the bottom three figures panels in Fig. 2d from top to bottom incorrectly read "S<sub>9,70</sub> > 0, S<sub>9,70</sub> > 0, S<sub>9,70</sub> < 0", and should have read "S<sub>9,70</sub> < 0, S<sub>9,70</sub> > 0, S<sub>9,70</sub> < 0". Finally, in the
A new mechanism was proposed to explain the fascinating schooling behavior of fish such as rotating balls, tori, and rings.
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