Crystallization in a Dense Suspension of Self-Propelled Particles

Using Brownian dynamics computer simulations, we show that a two-dimensional suspension of self-propelled (''active'') colloidal particles crystallizes at sufficiently high densities. Compared to the equilibrium freezing of passive particles, the freezing density is both significantly shifted and depends on the structural or dynamical criterion employed. In nonequilibrium the transition is accompanied by pronounced structural heterogeneities. This leads to a transition region between liquid and solid in which the suspension is globally ordered but unordered liquidlike "bubbles'' still persist.