Controlling active matter #

Organisers: Anton Souslov and Ananyo Maitra

Minisymposium abstract

Active matter refers to collections of living or synthetic constituents that turn ambient energy into mechanical work. As a complex far-from-equilibrium state, the descriptions of active matter at the single-particle, many-particle, and continuum levels require innovations in mathematical modelling. These models enable the control of biological and synthetic active materials and will allow us to design functional materials with specific well-controlled properties. This session will explore connections that will help build such theories of active matter and use these mathematical approaches to describe a variety of experimental systems.

Controlling active matter #

Odd dynamics of living chiral crystals #

Conditions for hydrodynamic coordination in arrays of model cilia #

Is the tendency for all living systems to do work universal? #

Shear thickening and Yielding Transitions in Biological Tissues #

Active elastocapillarity in soft solids with negative surface tension #

Large deviations and optimal control in active fluids #