title: Granular segregation driven by particle interactions.
abstract: We report the results of an experimental study of particle-particle interactions in a horizontally shaken granular layer that undergoes a second order phase transition from a binary gas to a segregation liquid as the packing fraction C is increased. By focusing on the behavior of individual particles, the effect of C is studied on (1) the process of cluster formation, (2) cluster dynamics, and (3) cluster destruction. The outcomes indicate that the segregation is driven by two mechanisms: attraction between particles with the same properties and random motion with a characteristic length that is inversely proportional to C. All clusters investigated are found to be transient and the probability distribution functions of the separation times display a power law tail, indicating that the splitting probability decreases with time.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Navarra, 31080 Pamplona, Spain.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lozano
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Navarra, 31080 Pamplona, Spain.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Zuriguel
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Navarra, 31080 Pamplona, Spain.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Garcimartín
authors.affiliation: Manchester Center for Nonlinear Dynamics, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mullin