{
  "abstract": "A self-contained hydrodynamic theory is proposed to reconcile the discrepancy between divergent Stokesian velocity fluctuations and finite experimental measurements in sedimenting suspensions. We show that the compensating backflow induces non-negligible inertia, giving rise to an emergent screening length $ξ\\sim aϕ^{-1/3}Re_p^{-1/3}$ far exceeding the mean interparticle spacing $aϕ^{-1/3}$ even at vanishingly small particle Reynolds numbers. This backflow inertial screening, together with finite-time viscous diffusion, arrests the indefinite spatiotemporal growth of large-scale velocity fluctuations. The resulting velocity fluctuations scale as $δu \\sim ϕ^{1/3}V_sRe_p^{-1/6}$, together with the viscous correlation time $τ_c=ξ^2/ν$, reproducing the well-known hydrodynamic self-diffusivity scaling $D_H\\sim V_s a$. The theory predicts the prefactors of these scaling laws without adjustable parameters, in good quantitative agreement with experimental measurements. It also successfully captures the experimentally observed crossover from the finite-correlation regime to the finite-system regime as the screening length becomes comparable to the system size.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2608.23997",
  "author_total": 1,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Hsien-Hung Wei"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/crvdbrq99ja71.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2608.23997",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "crvdbrq99ja71",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.23997",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "physics.flu-dyn"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2212|Particle Dynamics in Fluid Flows"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7204267545",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2608.23997",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-21",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/crvdbrq99ja71.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:23:19Z",
      "native_id": "2608.23997",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.23997"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:physics.flu-dyn",
      "subfield": "fluid-dynamics"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Backflow-Induced Inertial Arrest of Velocity Fluctuations in Sedimenting Suspensions",
  "title_text": "Backflow-Induced Inertial Arrest of Velocity Fluctuations in Sedimenting Suspensions",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:23:19Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/crvdbrq99ja71",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}