The aggregation-diffusion equation is a nonlocal PDE that arises in the collective motion of cells. Mathematically, it is driven by two competing effects: local repulsion modeled by nonlinear diffusion, and long-range attraction modeled by nonlocal interaction. In this talk, I will discuss several qualitative properties of its steady states and dynamical solutions.

Using continuous Steiner symmetrization techniques, we show that all steady states are radially symmetric up to a translation. (joint work with Carrillo, Hittmeir and Volzone). In a recent work, we further investigate whether they are unique within the radial class, and show that for a given mass, uniqueness/non-uniqueness of steady states are determined by the power of the degenerate diffusion, with the critical power being m = 2. (joint work with Delgadino and Yan.)