Our work in the news, on TV, radio, etc.

Biological microorganisms swim with flagella and cilia that execute nonreciprocal motions for low Reynolds number (Re) propulsion in viscous fluids. This symmetry requirement is a consequence of Purcell’s scallop theorem, which complicates the actuation scheme needed by microswimmers. However, most biomedically important fluids are non-Newtonian where the scallop theorem no longer holds. It should therefore be possible to realize a microswimmer that moves with reciprocal periodic body-shape changes in non-Newtonian fluids. Here we report a symmetric ‘micro-scallop’, a single-hinge microswimmer that can propel in shear thickening and shear thinning (non-Newtonian) fluids by reciprocal motion at low Re. Excellent agreement between our measurements and both numerical and analytical theoretical predictions indicates that the net propulsion is caused by modulation of the fluid viscosity upon varying the shear rate. This reciprocal swimming mechanism opens new possibilities in designing biomedical microdevices that can propel by a simple actuation scheme in non-Newtonian biological fluids.

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News about our work (October 2014 – April 2015):

News reports and media:

• Stuttgarter Allgemeine, Pressebericht  über unser Labor “Mechaniker für Nanoteile”, (2014).
• Innovations Report, “Nanobauteile nach Maß”, (2013).
• Phys.org  & Nanowerk: “Designing and building nanocomponents to spec”, (2013).
• Nature (2009), 459, 13 Nanotechnology: The helix that delivers
• Chemical & Engineering News, C&EN (2009), Magnetic Nanopropellers On The Move
• New Scientist (2009), #2709, 27. May, Sperm-like nanopropeller is smallest swimmer ever
• Harvard Science (2009), 14. May Spiral swimmers may be new workhorses
• Max Planck press release: Designing and building nanocomponents to spec, August 2013
• Journal Club for Condensed Matter Physics (2009), JCCM May 09
• Pro-Physik (2009), 4 .5. Holographic data storage - Doppelte Datendichte
• La Recherche, CNRS (2007) L'expérience retrouvée de Fresnel
• Physical Review Focus (2006), 1 Nov Splitting a Light Beam in Two
• Physics Web (2006), Nov 7 Chiral liquid splits light by polarization
• Nature Photonics (2006), doi:10.1038/nphoton.39 RefractionSplit personality
• Physics Today 59, 22 (Dec, 2006) New angles to refraction and reflection in chiral liquids
• Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (2006) 22. Nov Aus eins mach zwei