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Main Authors: Mirfendereski, Siamak, Gupta, Ankur
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.21180
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author Mirfendereski, Siamak
Gupta, Ankur
author_facet Mirfendereski, Siamak
Gupta, Ankur
contents Turing patterns are stationary, wave-like structures that emerge from the nonequilibrium assembly of reactive and diffusive components. While they are foundational in biophysics, their classical formulation relies on a single characteristic length scale that balances reaction and diffusion, making them overly simplistic for describing biological patterns, which often exhibit multi-scale structures, grain-like textures, and inherent imperfections. Here, we integrate diffusiophoretically-assisted assembly of finite-sized cells, driven by a background chemical gradient in a Turing pattern, while also incorporating intercellular interactions. This framework introduces key control parameters, such as the Péclet number, cell size distribution, and intercellular interactions, enabling us to reproduce strikingly similar structural features observed in natural patterns. We report imperfections, including spatial variations in pattern thickness, packing limits, and pattern breakups. Our model not only deepens our understanding but also opens a new line of inquiry into imperfect Turing patterns that deviate from the classical formulation in significant ways.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2601_21180
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Imperfect Turing Patterns: Diffusiophoretic Assembly of Hard Spheres via Reaction-Diffusion Instabilities
Mirfendereski, Siamak
Gupta, Ankur
Soft Condensed Matter
Biological Physics
Turing patterns are stationary, wave-like structures that emerge from the nonequilibrium assembly of reactive and diffusive components. While they are foundational in biophysics, their classical formulation relies on a single characteristic length scale that balances reaction and diffusion, making them overly simplistic for describing biological patterns, which often exhibit multi-scale structures, grain-like textures, and inherent imperfections. Here, we integrate diffusiophoretically-assisted assembly of finite-sized cells, driven by a background chemical gradient in a Turing pattern, while also incorporating intercellular interactions. This framework introduces key control parameters, such as the Péclet number, cell size distribution, and intercellular interactions, enabling us to reproduce strikingly similar structural features observed in natural patterns. We report imperfections, including spatial variations in pattern thickness, packing limits, and pattern breakups. Our model not only deepens our understanding but also opens a new line of inquiry into imperfect Turing patterns that deviate from the classical formulation in significant ways.
title Imperfect Turing Patterns: Diffusiophoretic Assembly of Hard Spheres via Reaction-Diffusion Instabilities
topic Soft Condensed Matter
Biological Physics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2601.21180