Dresden 2026 – scientific programme

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DY: Fachverband Dynamik und Statistische Physik

DY 33: Statistical Physics of Biological Systems I (joint session DY/BP)

DY 33.4: Talk

Wednesday, March 11, 2026, 10:15–10:30, ZEU/0114

Phase separation with non-local interactions — Filipe C. Thewes, Yicheng Qiang, Oliver W. Paulin, and •David Zwicker — Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization, Göttingen, Germany

Phase separation takes place in many complex systems, notably biological cells. While simple theories predict coarsening until only macroscopically large phases remain, concrete models often exhibit patterns with finite length scales, e.g., caused by chemical reactions, elasticity, membrane interactions, or charge. To unify such models, we here propose a field theory that combines phase separation with non-local interactions. If these interactions are long-ranged, they generally suppress coarsening, whereas systems with non-local short-range interactions additionally exhibit a continuous phase transition to patterned phases. Only the latter system allows for the coexistence of homogeneous and patterned phases, which we explain by mapping to the conserved Swift--Hohenberg model. Taken together, our generic model provides a framework that unifies similar phenomena observed in many complex phase-separating systems.

Keywords: Phase separation; Non-local interactions; Equilibrium statistical mechanics; Pattern formation