Living matter and active matter, as a physical system, comprise ensembles of constituents that continuously consume energy to generate mechanical work, drive motion, and maintain structures far from thermodynamic equilibrium. Living matter refers to biological active systems such as cells, tissues, and cytoskeletal networks, where internal biochemical processes power self-propulsion, force generation, and adaptive responses. Active matter generalizes these features to biological and synthetic units (e.g., self-propelled colloids, active nematics) modeled as particles or fields with persistent energy input at the microscale. Both exhibit emergent collective phenomena, including spontaneous flows, pattern formation, phase separation, and anomalous transport, governed by nonequilibrium statistical mechanics and continuum active hydrodynamics.
Many materials, both living and engineered, are powered from within. Scientists have thoroughly investigated how such 'active' materials operate, but so far, mostly in circumstances where the curvature of the environment ...
Soft Matter
15 hours ago
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The strongest glasses have an Achilles' heel that causes them to fail catastrophically when pushed past their limit. They do not bend or stretch, as all damage concentrates into a single plane and the material fails in an ...
Soft Matter
Aug 16, 2026
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Researchers at the University of Bayreuth, together with colleagues from Freie Universität Berlin and the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research Dresden, have developed a synthetic fiber system inspired by the cellular cytoskeleton ...
Nanophysics
Aug 5, 2026
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Physicists from Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU), the Technical University of Darmstadt, Sapienza University in Rome and the University of Camerino (both in Italy) have calculated the fundamental laws of thermodynamics ...
General Physics
Jul 27, 2026
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Protein aggregates are associated with the development of diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. These are found more often in certain areas of cells known as membraneless organelles. Do these organelles promote this ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 20, 2026
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Newly developed microparticles can infiltrate stubborn bacterial matrices and release tiny oxygen bubbles to clean surfaces and wounds more efficiently than hydrogen peroxide or other cleaning agents alone, researchers at ...
Molecular & Computational biology
Jul 9, 2026
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In a new study, researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) have resolved a longstanding mystery by showing how epithelial tissues exhibit slow-moving, glass-like behavior despite their fast-paced biological activity. ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 9, 2026
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High-speed movies of microscopic worms may sound like a dull night at the cinema, but this advanced imaging capability could help scientists better understand how diseases begin and progress, track subtle changes in cells ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jul 8, 2026
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Researchers from UNSW Sydney have built the first artificial protein motor capable of taking controlled, directional steps along a DNA track. The protein, dubbed Tumbleweed, moves by alternating between three "feet" that ...
Bio & Medicine
Jul 6, 2026
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There is a constant war going on in your body. Working against you are viruses and cancer cells growing uncontrollably, threatening your tissues and organs. Fighting on your side are immune cells such as lymphocytes, a type ...
