Confinement-driven emergence of hyperuniform fluids

Abstract

Controlling emergent structural order in spatially constrained systems is a fundamental challenge. Using large-scale simulations of a model fluid at equilibrium conditions, we show that geometric confinement alone can stabilize fluid and hyperuniform labyrinthine phases. Moreover, confinement can induce self-assembly into distinct regimes—ranging from nonhyperuniform to antihyperuniform configurations—providing a robust mechanism for tuning spatial order. Our results identify confinement as a minimal design principle for engineering systems with target structural properties, including (anti)hyperuniformity, without relying on genetic or chemical specificity, and with broad applications in multiple disciplines and technologies.