Biomedical subjects

Michel Droz

Publications and source records attributed to Michel Droz.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Boltzmann and hydrodynamic description for self-propelled particles.

We study analytically the emergence of spontaneous collective motion within large bidimensional groups of self-propelled particles with noisy local interactions, a schematic model for assemblies of biological organisms. As a central result, we derive from the individual dynamics the hydrodynamic equations for the density and velocity fields, thus giving a microscopic foundation to the phenomenological equations used in previous approaches. A homogeneous spontaneous motion emerges below a transition line in the noise-density plane. Yet, this state is shown to be unstable against spatial perturbations, suggesting that more complicated structures should eventually appear.

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PubMed2006

Definition and relevance of nonequilibrium intensive thermodynamic parameters.

We show that intensive thermodynamic parameters associated to additive conserved quantities can be naturally defined from a statistical approach in far-from-equilibrium steady-state systems, under few assumptions, and without any detailed balance requirement. It may apply, e.g., to dissipative systems such as granular gases where volume or mass is still conserved or to systems with periodic boundary conditions where fluxes of conserved quantities are present. We emphasize the usefulness of this concept to characterize the coexistence of different nonequilibrium phases and discuss the influence of the contact between two different systems, in relation with measurement issues.

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PubMed2006

Self-organized packs selection in predator-prey ecosystems.

We present a lattice model of a system of predators of five kinds, competing for prey. The predators are grouped in packs and characterized by two parameters-the energy spent on hunting and energy gained by the kill. The success of hunting depends on the actual competition among predators found near a prey. We determine via Monte Carlo simulations the numbers of predators of each kind as a function of time and the distribution of the size of their packs. We show that the ratio of the energy spent by the competing predators determines their fate. The energy gain plays only a secondary role. We show also that the system self-organizes itself into groups of predators living in well defined packs, which size depends on the energy spent. The most preferred size dependence on the energy spent follows a very simple power law. We present also a mean-field-type approach to the problem and we discuss the differences in the results obtained by the two methods, showing in particular, that the simulation approach produces more reliable results.

Animals↗

PubMed2005

Maxwell and very-hard-particle models for probabilistic ballistic annihilation: hydrodynamic description.

The hydrodynamic description of probabilistic ballistic annihilation, for which no conservation laws hold, is an intricate problem with hard spherelike dynamics for which no exact solution exists. We consequently focus on simplified approaches, the Maxwell and very-hard-particle (VHP) models, which allows us to compute analytically upper and lower bounds for several quantities. The purpose is to test the possibility of describing such a far from equilibrium dynamics with simplified kinetic models. The motivation is also in turn to assess the relevance of some singular features appearing within the original model and the approximations invoked to study it. The scaling exponents are first obtained from the (simplified) Boltzmann equation, and are confronted against direct Monte Carlo simulations. Then, the Chapman-Enskog method is used to obtain constitutive relations and transport coefficients. The corresponding Navier-Stokes equations for the hydrodynamic fields are derived for both Maxwell and VHP models. We finally perform a linear stability analysis around the homogeneous solution, which illustrates the importance of dissipation in the possible development of spatial inhomogeneities.

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PubMed2005

Nonequilibrium temperatures in steady-state systems with conserved energy.

We study a class of nonequilibrium lattice models describing local redistributions of a globally conserved quantity, which is interpreted as an energy. A particular subclass can be solved exactly, allowing us to define a statistical temperature T(th) along the same lines as in the equilibrium micro-canonical ensemble. We compute the response function and find that when the fluctuation-dissipation relation is linear, the slope T(FD)(-1) of this relation differs from the inverse temperature T(th)(-1). We argue that T(th) is physically more relevant than T(FD), since in the steady-state regime, it takes equal values in two subsystems of a large isolated system. Finally, a numerical renormalization group procedure suggests that all models within the class behave similarly at a coarse-grained level, leading to a parameter that describes the deviation from equilibrium. Quantitative predictions concerning this parameter are obtained within a mean-field framework.

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PubMed2004

Hydrodynamics of probabilistic ballistic annihilation.

We consider a dilute gas of hard spheres in dimension d> or =2 that upon collision either annihilate with probability p or undergo an elastic scattering with probability 1-p . For such a system neither mass, momentum, nor kinetic energy is a conserved quantity. We establish the hydrodynamic equations from the Boltzmann equation description. Within the Chapman-Enskog scheme, we determine the transport coefficients up to Navier-Stokes order, and give the closed set of equations for the hydrodynamic fields chosen for the above coarse-grained description (density, momentum, and kinetic temperature). Linear stability analysis is performed, and the conditions of stability for the local fields are discussed.

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PubMed2004

Temperature in nonequilibrium systems with conserved energy.

We study a class of nonequilibrium lattice models which describe local redistributions of a globally conserved energy. A particular subclass can be solved analytically, allowing us to define a temperature T(th) along the same lines as in the equilibrium microcanonical ensemble. The fluctuation-dissipation relation is explicitly found to be linear, but its slope differs from the inverse temperature T(-1)(th). A numerical renormalization group procedure suggests that, at a coarse-grained level, all models behave similarly, leading to a two-parameter description of their macroscopic properties.

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PubMed2004

Role of evolution by natural selection in population dynamics.

Using a Monte Carlo approach we study the role of inheritance and natural selection in the dynamics of populations. We show that a population subject to inheritance has a much better chance of survival in a given condition than a population where new generations do not inherit genomes of their parents. The dependence of the survival chance on such factors as selection pressure, fecundity, or carrying capacity of the system is much stronger when selection and inheritance are present. We demonstrate, in accordance with biological observations, that in certain conditions evolution can save a population which would perish without it.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Probabilistic ballistic annihilation with continuous velocity distributions.

We investigate the problem of ballistically controlled reactions where particles either annihilate upon collision with probability p, or undergo an elastic shock with probability 1-p. Restricting to homogeneous systems, we provide in the scaling regime that emerges in the long time limit, analytical expressions for the exponents describing the time decay of the density and the root-mean-square velocity, as continuous functions of the probability p and of a parameter related to the dissipation of energy. We work at the level of molecular chaos (nonlinear Boltzmann equation), and using a systematic Sonine polynomials expansion of the velocity distribution, we obtain in arbitrary dimension the first non-Gaussian correction and the corresponding expressions for the decay exponents. We implement Monte Carlo simulations in two dimensions, which are in excellent agreement with our analytical predictions. For p<1, numerical simulations lead to the conjecture that unlike for pure annihilation (p=1), the velocity distribution becomes universal, i.e., does not depend on the initial conditions.

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PubMed2003

Synchronization in coupled map lattices as an interface depinning.

We study a solid-on-solid (SOS) model whose dynamics is inspired by recent studies of the synchronization transition in coupled map lattices (CML). The synchronization of CML is thus related with a depinning of interface from a binding wall. Critical behavior of our SOS model depends on a specific form of binding (i.e., transition rates of the dynamics). For an exponentially decaying binding the depinning belongs to the directed percolation universality class. Other types of depinning, including the one with a line of critical points, are observed for a power-law binding.

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PubMed2003

Splitting the voter Potts model critical point.

Recently some two-dimensional models with double symmetric absorbing states were shown to share the same critical behavior that was called the voter universality class. We show that, for an absorbing-states Potts model with finite but further than nearest-neighbor range of interactions, the critical point is split into two critical points: one of the Ising type and the other of the directed percolation universality class. Similar splitting takes place in the three-dimensional nearest-neighbor model.

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PubMed2003

Dynamical properties of the synchronization transition.

We use spreading dynamics to study the synchronization transition (ST) of one-dimensional coupled map lattices (CML's). Recently, Baroni et al. [Phys. Rev. E 63, 036226 (2001)] have shown that the ST belongs to the directed percolation (DP) universality class for discontinuous CML's. This was confirmed by accurate numerical simulations for the Bernoulli map by Ahlers and Pikovsky [Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 254101 (2002)]. Spreading dynamics confirms such an identification only for random synchronized states. For homogeneous synchronized states the spreading exponents eta and delta are different from the DP exponents but their sum equals the corresponding sum of the DP exponents. Such a relation is typical of models with infinitely many absorbing states. Moreover, we calculate the spreading exponents for the tent map for which the ST belongs to the bounded Kardar-Parisi-Zhang (BKPZ) universality class. The estimation of spreading exponents for random synchronized states is consistent with the hyperscaling relation, while it is inconsistent for the homogeneous ones. Finally, we examine the asymmetric tent map. For small asymmetry the ST remains of the BKPZ type. However, for large asymmetry a different critical behavior appears, with exponents being relatively close to those for DP.

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PubMed2003

Some exact results for Boltzmann's annihilation dynamics.

The problem of ballistic annihilation for a spatially homogeneous system is revisited within Boltzmann's kinetic theory in two and three dimensions. Analytical results are derived for the time evolution of the particle density for some isotropic discrete bimodal velocity modulus distributions. According to the allowed values of the velocity modulus, different behaviors are obtained: power law decay with nonuniversal exponents depending continuously upon the ratio of the two velocities, or exponential decay. When one of the two velocities is equal to zero, the model describes the problem of ballistic annihilation in the presence of static traps. The analytical predictions are shown to be in agreement with the results of two-dimensional molecular dynamics simulations.

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PubMed2002

Exponential velocity tails in a driven inelastic Maxwell model.

The problem of the steady-state velocity distribution in a driven inelastic Maxwell model of shaken granular material is revisited. Numerical solution of the master equation and analytical arguments show that the model has bilateral exponential velocity tails [P(v) approximately e(-|v|/sqrt[D])], where D is the amplitude of the noise. Previous study of this model predicted Gaussian tails [P(v) approximately e(-av(2))].

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PubMed2002

Dynamics of ballistic annihilation.

The problem of ballistically controlled annihilation is revisited for general initial velocity distributions and an arbitrary dimension. An analytical derivation of the hierarchy equations obeyed by the reduced distributions is given, and a scaling analysis of the corresponding spatially homogeneous system is performed. This approach points to the relevance of the nonlinear Boltzmann equation for dimensions larger than 1 and provides expressions for the exponents describing the decay of the particle density n(t) proportional, variant t(-xi) and the root-mean-square velocity v proportional, variant t(-gamma) in terms of a parameter related to the dissipation of kinetic energy. The Boltzmann equation is then solved perturbatively within a systematic expansion in Sonine polynomials. Analytical expressions for the exponents xi and gamma are obtained in arbitrary dimension as a function of the parameter mu characterizing the small velocity behavior of the initial velocity distribution. Moreover, the leading non-Gaussian corrections to the scaled velocity distribution are computed. These expressions for the scaling exponents are in good agreement with the values reported in the literature for continuous velocity distributions in d=1. For the two-dimensional case, we implement Monte Carlo and molecular dynamics simulations that turn out to be in excellent agreement with the analytical predictions.

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PubMed2002

Dynamics of the breakdown of granular clusters.

Recently van der Meer et al. studied the breakdown of a granular cluster [Phys. Rev. Lett. 88, 174302 (2002)]. We reexamine this problem using an urn model, which takes into account fluctuations and finite-size effects. General arguments are given for the absence of a continuous transition when the number of urns (compartments) is greater than two. Monte Carlo simulations show that the lifetime of a cluster tau diverges at the limits of stability as tau approximately N(1/3), where N is the number of balls. After the breakdown, depending on the dynamical rules of our urn model, either normal or anomalous diffusion of the cluster takes place.

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PubMed2002

Moment ratios for an urn model of sand compartmentalization.

Numerically solving a master equation for a recently introduced nonequilibrium urn model of sand compartmentalization, we show that the order-parameter moment ratios of the fourth and sixth order remain constant along an exactly located line of critical points. Obtained values are in very good agreement with values predicted by Brézin and Zinn-Justin for the equilibrium Ising model above the critical dimension. At the tricritical point, these ratios acquire values that also agree with a suitably extended Brézin and Zinn-Justin approach.

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PubMed2002

Dynamics-dependent criticality in models with q absorbing states.

We study a one-dimensional, nonequilibrium Potts-like model that has q symmetric absorbing states. For q=2, as expected, the model belongs to the parity-conserving universality class. For q=3 the critical behavior depends on the dynamics of the model. Under a certain dynamics it remains generically in the active phase, which is also the feature of some other models with three absorbing states. However, a modified dynamics induces a parity-conserving phase transition. Relations with branching-annihilating random walk models are discussed in order to explain such a behavior.

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