Project Details
Projekt
Active colloidal clusters swimming through artificial constrictions
Applicants
Professor Dr. Gianaurelio Cuniberti, since 2/2020; Professor Dr. Artur Philipp Nikolaus Erbe
Subject Area
Statistical Physics, Nonlinear Dynamics, Complex Systems, Soft and Fluid Matter, Biological Physics
Term
from 2017 to 2021
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 366087165
Growing interest to the field of intelligent micro- and nanomachinery has resulted in enormously fast evolution of the wide class of artificial micro- and nano-motors, capable of self-propulsion in a liquid environment. A large diversity of artificial swimmers in terms of size, shape, and energy conversion pathway has been developed during the past years. It has also been proven that artificial swimmers can pick up cargo and move to well-defined places. Here we propose a method which will allow to move such swimmers through arbitrary external constrictions by determining and controlling the shape of the swimmers through externally applied potentials. The method is based on clusters built from magnetically capped particles. When these particles are oscillating up and down, the interaction between the particles inside the cluster set the whole cluster into motion. The direction and speed of motion is fully controlled by external magnetic fields, which are also used to define the shape of the clusters.We will demonstrate the motion of swimmers made of these clusters through externally built potentials, which are constructed using methods known in microfluidics. We will show how to adopt the clusters for motion through narrow constrictions. Such motion in combination with the possibility to carry cargo will deliver important insight into the possibility to use artificial swimmers in biological systems. In this context, it is especially important that the clusters are driven without the input of a possibly harmful fuel. The goal of the current proposal is to demonstrate the ability of the clusters to move in various external potentials and to optimize this motion in terms of efficiency and speed.
DFG Programme
Priority Programmes
Ehemalige Antragstellerin
Professorin Dr. Larysa Baraban, until 2/2020
