Dresden 2026 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 12: Cytoskeleton I
BP 12.5: Talk
Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 10:45–11:00, BAR/0205
Polydispersity-Induced Traveling Waves in Microtubule-Motor Mixtures — •Katrina Wharam1, Ivan Maryshev1, Filippo De Luca2, and Erwin Frey1 — 1Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, Germany — 2University of Cambridge, United Kingdom
Microtubule-motor mixtures are exemplary active systems that self-organize into a variety of non-equilibrium phases, including asters, bilayers, and active foams. While previous theoretical work has largely assumed monodisperse filament lengths, we investigate a mixture with two microtubule populations of distinct lengths and derive a continuum field theory using a Boltzmann-Ginzburg-Landau approach. Analytical and numerical analysis shows that, despite reciprocal microscopic interactions, the system develops emergent asymmetric behaviour at the macroscopic scale. We identify the filament length ratio as a key control parameter: small length ratios yield stationary nematic bands, whereas increasing the disparity leads to traveling waves - a pattern absent in monodisperse models. Our results reveal a generic, collective route to traveling states in non-self-propelling active matter and connect ad-hoc asymmetric-alignment theories with biologically realistic microtubule systems.
Keywords: active matter; microtubule–motor mixtures; polydispersity; traveling waves; Boltzmann–Ginzburg–Landau theory