A GUI to study Active Matter

Active matter is a field of research that studies the phenomena and complex behavior emerging in systems of interacting objects. It has been used to describe schools of fish, flocks of birds, and even things as small as molecules in living cells. The Vicsek Model is a canonical model of active matter—composed of locally aligning, self-propelled particles—that has potential to be applied to a wide variety of topics, and could attract aspiring new students to science. However, since the field of active matter has only recently developed over the past two decades, it is largely inaccessible to students outside the field. To address this problem we have developed a Graphical User Interface (GUI) that simulates the Vicsek Model for user-defined variables, and then calculates corresponding order parameters and density plots. Within the GUI, the user can tune the control parameters and see the change in dynamics in real-time. The simulations will allow the user to make observations on the complex behavior and patterns based on geometric effects and reflecting boundary conditions. The GUI makes basic active matter simulations widely accessible and allows students and researchers to explore the complex dynamics.