# Multi-stable free states of an active particle from a coherent memory dynamics

## TL;DR

This paper explores the complex dynamics of a self-propelled particle with coherent memory, revealing multiple stable free states and oscillatory behaviors through experiments and simulations, driven by wave interference effects.

## Contribution

It demonstrates the existence of multiple stable free states in a memory-driven active particle system, combining experimental and numerical evidence.

## Key findings

- Multiple stable free states identified
- Oscillatory regimes observed in phase space
- Coexistence of states due to wave-based memory

## Abstract

We investigate the dynamics of a deterministic self-propelled particle endowed with coherent memory. We evidence experimentally and numerically that it exhibits several stable free states. The system is composed of a self-propelled drop bouncing on a vibrated liquid driven by the waves it emits at each bounce. This object possesses a propulsion memory resulting from the coherent interference of the waves accumulated along its path. We investigate here the transitory regime of the build-up of the dynamics which leads to velocity modulations. Experiments and numerical simulations enable us to explore unchartered areas of the phase space and reveal the existence of a self-sustained oscillatory regime. Finally, we show the co-existence of several free states. This feature emerges both from the spatio-temporal non-locality of this path memory dynamics as well as the wave nature of the driving mechanism.

---
Source: https://tomesphere.com/paper/1812.08825