  We use a mesoscopic computer simulation method to study the interplay between
hydrodynamic and Brownian fluctuations during steady-state sedimentation of
hard sphere particles for Peclet numbers (Pe) ranging from 0.1 to 15. Even when
the hydrodynamic interactions are an order of magnitude weaker than Brownian
forces, they still induce backflow effects that dominate the reduction of the
average sedimentation velocity with increasing particle packing fraction.
Velocity fluctuations, on the other hand, begin to show nonequilibrium
hydrodynamic character for Pe > 1
