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In equilibrium, disorder conspires with topological defects to redefine theordered states of matter in systems as diverse as crystals, superconductors andliquid crystals. Far from equilibrium, however, the consequences of quencheddisorder on active condensed matter remain virtually uncharted. Here, we reveala state of strongly disordered active matter with no counterparts inequilibrium: a dynamical vortex glass. Combining high-content microfluidicexperiments and theory, we show how colloidal flocks collectively cruisethrough disorder without relaxing the topological singularities of their flows.The resulting state is highly dynamical but the flow patterns, shaped by afinite density of frozen vortices, are stationary and exponentiallydegenerated. Quenched isotropic disorder acts as a random gauge field turningactive liquids into dynamical vortex glasses. We argue that this robustmechanism should shape the collective dynamics of a broad class of disorderedactive matter, from synthetic active nematics to collections of living cellsexploring heterogeneous media.

Emergence of dynamic vortex glasses in disordered polar active fluids