Spontaneous polarization and locomotion of an active particle with surface-mobile enzymes
We examine a mechanism of locomotion of active particles whose surface is uniformly coated with mobile enzymes. The enzymes catalyze a reaction that drives phoretic flows but their homogeneous distribution forbids locomotion by symmetry. We find that the ability of the enzymes to migrate over the su...
| Autores: | , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2020 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) |
| Repositorio: | UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/340352 |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/2117/340352 https://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevFluids.5.122001 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Fluid mechanics Mecànica de fluids Classificació AMS::76 Fluid mechanics::76Z Biological fluid mechanics Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Matemàtiques i estadística::Matemàtica aplicada a les ciències |
| Sumario: | We examine a mechanism of locomotion of active particles whose surface is uniformly coated with mobile enzymes. The enzymes catalyze a reaction that drives phoretic flows but their homogeneous distribution forbids locomotion by symmetry. We find that the ability of the enzymes to migrate over the surface combined with self-phoresis can lead to a spontaneous symmetry-breaking instability whereby the homogeneous distribution of enzymes polarizes and the particle propels. The instability is driven by the advection of enzymes by the phoretic flows and occurs above a critical Péclet number. The transition to polarized motile states occurs via a supercritical or subcritical pitchfork bifurcations, the latter of which enables hysteresis and coexistence of uniform and polarized states. |
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