Statistical Mechanics of Active Matter

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Grzegorz Szamel of Colorado State University is supported by an award from the Chemical Theory, Models and Computational Methods program in the Chemistry division to develop statistical mechanics of active matter. Active matter consists of objects that use energy from their environment to perform systematic motion. There is a wide range of examples, cells, bacteria, especially prepared colloidal particles, and macroscopic objects like live animals. Due to the continuous consumption and dissipation of energy by their constituents, active matter systems can exhibit fascinating properties that are very different from those of more familiar equilibrium systems. Szamel and his group will develop new methods to study the properties of active matter and will advance the fundamental understanding of these properties. Szamel's research projects will expose undergraduate and graduate students to a variety of advanced scientific methods. Szamel and his group will develop an outreach activity for high school science students focusing on the scientific and historical importance of Brownian motion, which will be accompanied by simple projects.The description of static and dynamic behavior of active matter is an outstanding scientific challenge, which has implications for the understanding of biological systems and the design of bio-inspired materials. Szamel and his group will derive and test efficient computer simulation methods to study rheological properties of active matter. Next, they will further develop the stochastic thermodynamics of active matter. They will use it to develop feedback control protocols for single active particle engines. Finally, Szamel and his group will elucidate the importance of the long-range equal time velocity correlations, which spontaneously arise in systems of self-propelled particles without explicit velocity aligning interactions. The research activities will enhance the educational experience of undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral associates. First, through a combination of different projects graduate students and postdoctoral associates will gain deep knowledge of both computational, simulational, and purely theoretical methods. Second, Szamel will develop a new advanced physical chemistry of soft materials course, which will become an integral part of the new undergraduate physical chemistry curriculum. Third, he will develop a capstone program in computational and theoretical chemistry.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.