Dresden 2026 – scientific programme
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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik
BP 38: Active Matter VI (joint session DY/BP)
BP 38.7: Talk
Friday, March 13, 2026, 11:30–11:45, ZEU/0160
Conservation laws and slow dynamics determine the universality class of interfaces in active matter — •Raphael Maire1, Andrea Plati1, Leonardo Galliano2,3, Frank Smallenburg1, Ludovic Berthier2, and Giuseppe Foffi1 — 1Université Paris-Saclay, Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, 91405 Orsay, France — 2Gulliver, ESPCI Paris, PSL Research University, 75005 Paris, France — 3Dipartimento di Fisica, Università di Trieste, Strada Costiera 11, 34151, Trieste, Italy
While equilibrium interfaces display universal large-scale statistics, interfaces in phase-separated active and driven systems are predicted to belong to distinct non-equilibrium universality classes. Yet, such behavior has proven difficult to observe, with most systems exhibiting equilibrium-like fluctuations despite their strongly non-equilibrium microscopic dynamics.
We introduce an active hard-disk model that is far from equilibrium but lacks self-propulsion. Contrary to self-propelled models, it displays clear non-equilibrium interfacial scaling and allows the first observation of the | q|KPZ and wet-| q|KPZ universality classes while revealing a new, previously overlooked universality class arising in systems with slow crystalline or glassy dynamics. We also show that hyperuniformity in the bulk suppresses accordingly the fluctuations of the interface. These distinct classes are selected by conservation laws and slow hydrodynamic modes.
Our model can be experimentally realized in vibrated granular systems and offers a new route to study far from equilibrium interfaces.
Keywords: Interfaces; Active matter; Conservation laws; Field theory; Fluctuations