Directed transport of chiral active particles in transversal activity gradients

Abstract

Active matter can perform different movements in various complex environments, where their self-propelled speed can be adjusted accordingly. Here we numerically investigate the motion of chiral active particles in a two-dimensional straight channel. The transversal activity gradients can produce the system asymmetry and induce the directed transport of chiral active particles. The direction of transport is completely controlled by the chirality of active particles. The average velocity is a peaked function of asymmetry parameter or channel width. Usually, the environment noises are harmful to the directed transport. However, an appropriate translational noise may be beneficial for the directed transport when the asymmetry parameter is large enough. Further, we demonstrate an effective scheme for chiral separation and find that the separation efficiency can reach 100%.