Autonomous oscillations in the structure-function properties of dynamically regulated active colloidal networks

The ability to cyclically change structure and function with time is a property seen across the biological world, but this property has not yet been synthetically engineered as an autonomous regulatory process. Motivated by this, we construct and study a computational model of active colloids which undergo periodic crosslinking and unlinking as a function of time. The colloids are modeled as self-propelled particles which interact with each other via a Lennard Jones potential and whose dynamics follow the Vicsek model, while the crosslinking proteins are modeled as Hookean springs. Periodic crosslinking and unlinking on a microscopic scale leads to the emergence of cyclic macroscopic structural regimes with distinct material properties. Our results may provide insights into the design of autonomous active materials that can harness energy-driven, molecular-scale biological ratchets to perform large-scale motion and work.