Transport properties of disordered two-dimensional complex plasma crystal

In this study, we numerically investigate the transport properties of a two-dimensional (2D) complex plasma crystal using diffusion of coplanar dust lattice waves. In the limit where the Hamiltonian interactions can be decoupled from the non-Hamiltonian effects, we identify two distinct types of wave transport: Anderson-type delocalization and long-distance excitation. We use a recently developed spectral approach to evaluate the contribution of the Anderson problem and compare it to the results of the simulation. The benefit of our approach to transport problems is twofold. First, we employ a highly tuneable macroscopic hexagonal crystal, which exhibits many-body interactions and allows for the investigation of transport properties at the kinetic level. Second, the analysis of the transport problem in 2D is provided using an innovative spectral approach, which avoids the use of scaling and boundary conditions. The comparison between the analytically predicted and numerically observed wave dynamics allows for the study of important characteristics of this open system. In our simulations, we observe long-distance lattice excitation, which occurs around lattice defects even when the initial perturbation does not spread from the centre to the exterior of the crystal. In the decoupled Hamiltonian regime, this many-body effect can be attributed to the dust lattice interaction with the plasma environment.