Ratchet Cellular Automata for Colloids in Dynamic Traps

TL;DR

This study uses numerical simulations to explore how colloids in dynamic traps can transmit signals efficiently, with thermal effects playing a crucial role, and demonstrates how trap geometry influences deterministic and stochastic transport regimes.

Contribution

It introduces a novel ratchet cellular automata design with dynamic traps for colloids, showing how geometry adjustments can control transport behavior and thermal effects.

Findings

Thermal effects can enhance transport efficiency.

High temperatures induce thermally generated kinks that impair signal transmission.

Adjustable trap geometry can switch between deterministic and stochastic regimes.

Abstract

We numerically investigate the transport of kinks in a ratchet cellular automata geometry for colloids interacting with dynamical traps. We find that thermal effects can enhance the transport efficiency in agreement with recent experiments. At high temperatures we observe the creation and annihilation of thermally induced kinks that degrade the signal transmission. We consider both the deterministic and stochastic cases and show how the trap geometry can be adjusted to switch between these two cases. The operation of the dynamical trap geometry can be achieved with the adjustment of fewer parameters than ratchet cellular automata constructed using static traps.