Why do larger particles require less centrifugal force than smaller particles to settle?

Larger particles require less centrifugal force to settle because the migration rate of a particle in a centrifuge depends on several factors, including the particle's size.

The net motivating force acting on a particle is the difference between the centrifugal field and the opposing buoyancy of the liquid. When comparing two particles of different sizes, the larger particle experiences a greater effective force relative to the drag resistance encountered in the fluid. Specifically, all other conditions being equal, a particle with a diameter 10 times that of another will require only 1/100 as much average centrifugal field to move a given distance in the same amount of time as the smaller particle.1

This relationship is fundamentally linked to the physics of sedimentation, where the velocity of a particle moving through a fluid is influenced by its size and density, as described by principles such as Stokes's law. Because larger particles migrate more rapidly under a given force, they reach the sediment layer more efficiently than smaller particles, which may remain suspended in the fluid for a longer duration.21