Eur. Phys. J. Plus (2022) 137: 353
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-022-02496-y

Regular Article

Step, dip, and bell-shape traveling waves in a (2 + 1)-chemotaxis model with traction and long-range diffusion

¹ Laboratory of Biophysics, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, University of Yaounde I, P.O. Box 812, Yaounde, Cameroon
² African Centre for Advanced Studies, P.O. Box 4477, Yaounde, Cameroon
³ Department of Mathematics and Physical Sciences, National Advanced School of Engineering of Yaounde, University of Yaounde I, P.O. Box 8390, Yaounde, Cameroon
⁴ National Advanced School of Engineering of Maroua, University of Maroua, P.O. Box 46, Maroua, Cameroon

Received: 12 August 2021
Accepted: 15 February 2022
Published online: 17 March 2022

Abstract

In this paper, a new (2 + 1)-dimensional chemotaxis model is introduced, the focus being the understanding of influences of cooperative mechanisms from traction forces, long-range diffusion to chemotaxis on the dynamical characteristics of waves and their transport. Applying the F-expansion method, three families of new traveling wave solutions of bacterial density and chemoattractant concentration are constructed, including step, dip, and bell-shape wave profiles. The dependence of the conditions of existence of our solutions with respect to the model parameters is fully clarified. We found that traction and long-range diffusion slow down the waves and entail the transport of a small number of particles. Surprisingly, the long-range diffusion increases the thickness of the wave but does not alter its magnitude. Among families of solutions constructed, dip waves travel faster may be used to explain fast coordination among particles. As they support the transport of large amounts of cells, step waves could explain the transport of particles in high dense media. Intensive numerical simulations corroborate with a pretty much good accuracy our theoretical analysis, confirming the robustness of our predictions. Traction and long-range diffusion deeply affect the wave dynamics, they must be taken into account for a better understanding of chemotaxis systems.