Solitary states in the mean-field limit

Abstract

We study active matter systems where the orientational dynamics of underlying self-propelled particles obey second-order equations. By primarily concentrating on a spatially homogeneous setup for particle distribution, our analysis combines theories of active matter and oscillatory networks. For such systems, we analyze the appearance of solitary states via a homoclinic bifurcation as a mechanism of the frequency clustering. By introducing noise, we establish a stochastic version of solitary states and derive the mean-field limit described by a partial differential equation for a one-particle probability density function, which one might call the continuum Kuramoto model with inertia and noise. By studying this limit, we establish second-order phase transitions between polar order and disorder. The combination of both analytical and numerical approaches in our study demonstrates an excellent qualitative agreement between mean-field and finite-size models.