Related papers: Magnetophoresis of Flexible DNA-based Dumbbell Str…
We study different configurations of permanent magnets and ferromagnetic circuit, in order to optimize the magnetic field for the so-called ``magnetic tweezers'' technique, for studing mechanical properties of DNA molecules. The magnetic…
We present quantitative results for the drift velocity of a polymer in a gel if a force (e.g. through an electric or magnetic field) acts on a tag, attached to one of its ends. This is done by introducing a modification of the…
DNA nanostructures with programmable shape and interactions can be used as building blocks for the self-assembly of crystalline materials with prescribed nanoscale features, holding a vast technological potential. Structural rigidity and…
Viscoelastic fluids impact the locomotion of swimming microorganisms and can be harnessed to devise new types of self-propelling devices. Here we report on experiments demonstrating the use of normal stress differences for propulsion. Rigid…
Magnetic gels with embedded micro/nano-sized magnetic particles in crosslinked polymer networks can be actuated by external magnetic fields, with changes in their internal microscopic structures and macroscopic mechanical properties. We…
Magnetic gels and elastomers are promising candidates to construct reversibly excitable soft actuators, triggered from outside by magnetic fields. These magnetic fields induce or alter the magnetic interactions between discrete rigid…
We present a combined experimental and numerical study into the magnetophoresis behavior of weakly magnetic nanoparticle suspensions in the vicinity of a wire under a non-uniform magnetic field and negligible inertia. The experiments were…
Advances in DNA nanotechnology have stimulated the search for simple motifs that can be used to control the properties of DNA nanostructures. One such motif, which has been used extensively in structures such as polyhedral cages,…
The manipulation of geometrically constrained magnetic domain walls (DWs) in nanoscale magnetic strips has attracted much interest recently, with proposals for prospective memory and logic devices. Here we propose to use the high…
We study the motion of long polymers (eg DNA) in a gel under the influence of an external force acting locally on small segments of the polymer. In particular, we examine the dependence of the drift velocity on the position where the force…
Molecular motor proteins form the basis of cellular dynamics. Recently, notable efforts have led to the creation of their DNA-based mimics, which can carry out complex nanoscale motion. However, such functional analogues have not yet been…
DNA nanostar (DNAns) hydrogels are promising materials for in vivo applications, including tissue regeneration and drug and antibody delivery. However, a systematic and quantitative understanding of the design principles controlling their…
The article demonstrates a technique for fabricating a structure with the inclusion of suspended DNA threads and manipulating them using composite nanotweezers with shape memory effect. This technique could be suitable for stretching of…
Magnetic gels are composite materials, consisting of a polymer matrix and embedded magnetic particles. Those are mechanically coupled to each other, giving rise to the magnetostrictive effects as well as to a controllable overall elasticity…
Magnetotaxis is a well known phenomenon in swimming microorganisms which sense magnetic fields e.g. by incorporating crystalline magnetosomes. In designing artificial active matter with tunable dynamics, external magnetic fields can provide…
In the perspective of developing smart hybrid materials with customized features, ferrogels and magnetorheological elastomers allow a synergy of elasticity and magnetism. The interplay between elastic and magnetic properties gives rise to a…
Flow-driven rotary motors drive functional processes in human society such as windmills and water wheels. Although examples of such rotary motors also feature prominently in cell biology, their synthetic construction at the nanoscale has…
The control over DNA elongation in nanofluidic devices holds great potential for large-scale genomic analysis. So far, the manipulation of DNA in nanochannels has been mostly carried out with electrophoresis and seldom with hydrodynamics,…
Three-dimensional DNA networks, composed of tri- or higher valent nanostars with sticky, single-stranded DNA overhangs, have been previously studied in the context of designing thermally responsive, viscoelastic hydrogels. In this work, we…
Stimulus-responsive DNA-hydrogels with swelling capabilities are a promising class of materials for biomedical applications such as drug delivery and biosensing. However, translation of these systems to microscale applications requires…