Phase Transition of Hard Disk Systems with Vicsek-type Interactions

Abstract

The phase diagram of self-propelled hard disk systems with Vicsek-type alignment interactions was investigated by event-driven molecular dynamics simulations. The model incorporates two competing order parameters: the polar order-disorder transition associated with collective velocity alignment (Vicsek model) and the orientational order arising from solid-fluid transitions (Alder transition) induced by excluded volume effects. The incompressibility of hard disks suppresses motility-induced phase separation at high packing fractions. Distinctive fluctuations were observed near the transition point, accompanied by anomalous shifts in the transition point as functions of noise intensity and packing fraction. Analysis of local configurational parameters -- specifically, orientational order and circularity of free volume -- provides insight into the microscopic origins of these anomalous phase transition shifts.