Velocity distribution of fluidized granular gases in the presence of gravity

The velocity distribution of a fluidized dilute granular gas in the direction perpendicular to the gravitational field is investigated by means of molecular dynamics simulations. The results indicate that the velocity distribution can be exactly described neither by a Gaussian nor by a stretched exponential law. Moreover, it does not exhibit any kind of scaling. In fact, the actual shape of the distribution depends on the number of monolayers at rest, on the restitution coefficient and on the height at what it is measured. The role played by the number of particle-particle collisions as compared with the number of particle-wall collisions is discussed.