title: Emergence of collective behavior in groups of excitable catalyst-loaded particles: spatiotemporal dynamical quorum sensing.
abstract: Spontaneous spatiotemporal wave activity occurs in groups of excitable particles for groups larger than a critical size. Experiments are carried out with particles loaded with the catalyst of the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction that are immersed in catalyst-free reaction mixture. The particles diffusively exchange activator and inhibitor species with the surrounding solution. All particles are nonoscillatory when separated from the other particles; however, target and spiral waves are exhibited in sufficiently large groups. A cellular particle model of the system also exhibits transitions from excitable steady state behavior to spatiotemporal wave activity with increasing group size.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506, USA.
authors.forename: Mark R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Tinsley
authors.forename: Annette F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.forename: Zhaoyang
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Showalter
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002384:Catalysis; D004023:Dictyostelium / Q000502:physiology; D010316:Particle Size; D053038:Quorum Sensing / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors