Speaker
Description
We study the collective behavior of a polar flock in an inhomogeneous environment in two dimensions. The inhomogeneity is modeled by introducing circular regions at random locations on the substrate with high noise, but accessible for the flock to move. Hence, inside such regions, the particles’ orientation gets randomized. Such inhomogeneities differ from physical disorder, which obstructs the space for incoming particles. The study focuses on how the phase behavior of polar flock changes by tuning the area fraction of inhomogeneity. As area fraction increases, the system crosses over from long-range to quasi-long-range order and ultimately to a disordered phase, while
the order–disorder transition for flocking changes from discontinuous to continuous.