Related papers: Flying in Two Dimensions
We address the flutter instability of a flexible plate immersed in an axial flow. This instability is similar to flag flutter and results from the competition between destabilising pressure forces and stabilising bending stiffness. In…
Real-life bacteria often swim in complex fluids, but our understanding of the interactions between bacteria and complex surroundings is still evolving. In this work, rod-like \textit{Bacillus subtilis} swims in a quasi-2D environment with…
We theoretically and computationally study the low-Reynolds-number hydrodynamics of a linear active microswimmer surfing on a compressible thin fluid layer characterized by an odd viscosity. Since the underlying three-dimensional fluid is…
The mayfly nymph breathes under water through an oscillating array of wing-shaped tracheal gills. As the nymph grows, the kinematics of these gills change abruptly from rowing to flapping. The classical fluid dynamics approach to consider…
The effects of fluid elasticity on the swimming behavior of the nematode \emph{Caenorhabditis elegans} are experimentally investigated by tracking the nematode's motion and measuring the corresponding velocity fields. We find that fluid…
We investigate the phenomenon of air entrainment in turbulent water jets exiting a pool near the free surface. Our experimental results reveal that bubble entrainment occurs only within a specific region close to the point where the jet…
Study of the locomotion of a centipede (L. forficatus) at the air-water interface reveals that it does not predominantly use its 14 leg pairs to locomote; unlike most swimmers which propagate head-to-tail body bending waves, this species…
Fiberboids are active filaments trapped at the interface of two phases, able of harnessing energy (and matter) fluxes across the interface in order to produce a rolling-like self-propulsion. We discuss several table-top examples and develop…
There is increasing evidence that mammalian cells not only crawl on substrates but can also swim in fluids. To elucidate the mechanisms of the onset of motility of cells in suspension, a model which couples actin and myosin kinetics to…
Phase change under reduced environmental pressures is key to understanding liquid discharge and propulsion processes for aerospace applications. A representative case is the sessile water droplets exposed to high vacuum, which experience…
Many bacteria live in natural and clinical environments with abundant macromolecular polymers. Macromolecular fluids commonly display viscoelasticity and non-Newtonian rheological behavior; it is unclear how these complex-fluid properties…
Airborne insects generate a leading edge vortex when they flap their wings. This coherent vortex is a low pressure region that enhances the lift of flapping wings compared to fixed wings. Insect wings are thin membranes strengthened by a…
We numerically study confined channel foam flow around an obstacle using a two-dimensional bubble model, inspired by experiments performed in the same geometry. We systematically vary the polydispersity, the external driving force, and the…
Fluid flow through layered materials with different wetting behavior is observed in a wide range of applications in biological, environmental and technical systems. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the occuring transport mechanisms…
We report measurements of the evolution of lines, planes, and volumes in an intensely turbulent laboratory flow using high-speed particle tracking. We find that the classical characteristic time scale of an eddy at the initial scale of the…
Locomotion and transport of microorganisms in fluids is an essential aspect of life. Search for food, orientation toward light, spreading of off-spring, and the formation of colonies are only possible due to locomotion. Swimming at the…
Biomolecules, such as proteins and RNAs, can phase separate in the cytoplasm of cells to form biomolecular condensates. Such condensates are liquid-like droplets that can wet biological surfaces such as membranes. Many molecules that…
Cavitation and bubble dynamics are central concepts in engineering, the natural sciences, and the mathematics of fluid mechanics. Due to the nonlinear nature of their dynamics, the governing equations are not fully solvable. Here, the…
A dynamic self-organized morphology is the hallmark of network-shaped organisms like slime moulds and fungi. Organisms continuously re-organize their flexible, undifferentiated body plans to forage for food. Among these organisms the slime…
The motion of flexible fibers through structured fluidic environments is ubiquitous in nature and industrial applications. Most often, their dynamics results from the complex interplay between internal elastic stresses, contact forces and…