  This work presents a microscale approach for simulating the dielectrophoresis
(DEP) assembly of polarizable particles under an external electric field. The
model is shown to capture interesting dynamical and topological features, such
as the formation of chains of particles and their incipient aggregation into
hierarchical structures. A quantitative characterization in terms of the number
and size of these structures is also discussed. This computational model could
represent a viable numerical tool to study the mechanical properties of
particle-based hierarchical materials and suggest new strategies for enhancing
their design and manufacture.
