TY  - JOUR
IS  - 18
JF  - Journal of Physics A: Mathematical and General
Y1  - 1999/03//
SP  - L337
PB  - IOPscience
A1  - Marani, Marco
A1  - Banavar, Jayanth R
A1  - Caldarelli, Guido
A1  - Maritan, Amos
A1  - Rinaldo, Andrea
VL  - 31
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0305-4470/31/18/002
KW  - PACS: 05.65.+b Self-organized systems; 41.20.Cv  Electrostatics; Poisson and Laplace equations
KW  -  boundary-value problems; 02.60.Lj Ordinary and partial differential equations; boundary value problems
TI  - Stationary self-organized fractal structures in an open, dissipative electrical system
AV  - none
N2  - We study the stationary state of a Poisson problem for a system of N perfectly conducting metal balls driven by electric forces to move within a medium of very low electrical conductivity onto which charges are sprayed from outside. When grounded at a confining boundary, the system of metal balls is experimentally known to self-organize into stable fractal aggregates. We simulate the dynamical conditions leading to the formation of such aggregated patterns and analyse the fractal properties. From our results and those obtained for steady-state systems that obey minimum total energy dissipation (and potential energy of the system as a whole), we suggest a possible dynamical rule for the emergence of scale-free structures in nature. 
SN  - 0305-4470
EP  - L343
ID  - eprints1172
ER  -