Hyperuniform Active Matter

Abstract Hyperuniformity in driven disordered systems 1,2 and giant number fluctuations in active matter 3,4 represent opposite ends in a spectrum of statistical correlations found in physical systems outside of thermal equilibrium. Despite both these phenomena representing milestones in our understanding of non-equilibrium physics -- with potential applications ranging from optimal packing patterns and transport in biological matter 5,6 to the fabrication of disordered materials with photonic bandgaps 7-10 --, the possibility of them being connected has remained so far elusive. Using a combination of experimental and theoretical work on active nematic defects, we demonstrate, through the notion of critical absorbing states 11,12, that such a spectrum is in fact closed, and that active matter can in fact be hyperuniform.