Analytical approach to sorting in periodic and random potentials

James P. Gleeson, J. M. Sancho, A. M. Lacasta, Katja Lindenberg

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

There has been a recent revolution in the ability to manipulate micrometer-sized objects on surfaces patterned by traps or obstacles of controllable configurations and shapes. One application of this technology is to separate particles driven across such a surface by an external force according to some particle characteristic such as size or index of refraction. The surface features cause the trajectories of particles driven across the surface to deviate from the direction of the force by an amount that depends on the particular characteristic, thus leading to sorting. While models of this behavior have provided a good understanding of these observations, the solutions have so far been primarily numerical. In this paper we provide analytic predictions for the dependence of the angle between the direction of motion and the external force on a number of model parameters for periodic as well as random surfaces. We test these predictions against exact numerical simulations.

Original languageEnglish
Article number041102
JournalPhysical Review E - Statistical Physics, Plasmas, Fluids, and Related Interdisciplinary Topics
Volume73
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2006
Externally publishedYes

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