Related papers: Propulsion of a two-sphere swimmer

Here we introduce a two-dimensional (2D) low-Reynolds swimmer and discuss the motion of the swimmer both in noise-free and stochastic regimes. Three spheres, linked by extensible arms, in a plane form the triangle body of micro-swimmer.…

We use the boundary element method to study the low-Reynolds number locomotion of a spherical model microorganism in a circular tube. The swimmer propels itself by tangen- tial or normal surface motion in a tube whose radius is on the order…

It is shown that low Reynolds number fluid flows can cause suspended particles to respond as though they were in an equilibrium system with an effective potential. This general result follows naturally from the fact that different methods…

Swimming microorganisms often have to propel in complex, non-Newtonian fluids. We carry out experiments with self-propelling helical swimmers driven by an externally rotating magnetic field in shear-thinning, inelastic fluids. Similarly to…

A mechanical model of swimming and flying in an incompressible viscous fluid in the absence of gravity is studied on the basis of assumed equations of motion. The system is modeled as an assembly of rigid spheres subject to elastic direct…

The problem of optimal microscopic swimming in a noisy environment is analyzed. A simplified model in which propulsion is generated by the relative motion of three spheres connected by immaterial links has been considered. We show that an…

The hydrodynamic interactions of a suspension of self-propelled particles are studied using a direct numerical simulation method which simultaneously solves for the host fluid and the swimming particles. A modified version of the "Smoothed…

We conduct experiments with flexible swimmers to address the impact of fluid viscoelasticity on their locomotion. The swimmers are composed of a magnetic head actuated in rotation by a frequency-controlled magnetic field and a flexible tail…

Simple, linear equations relate microscopic swimmers to the corresponding gliders and pumps. They have the following set of consequences: The swimming velocity of free swimmers can be inferred from the force on the tethered swimmer and vice…

We theoretically investigate the effect of random fluctuations on the motion of elongated microswimmers near hydrodynamic transport barriers in externally-driven fluid flows. Focusing on the two-dimensional hyperbolic flow, we consider the…

The results of an experimental investigation of a sphere performing torsional oscillations in a Stokes flow are presented. A novel experimental set up was developed which enabled the motion of the sphere to be remotely controlled through…

We investigate the morphodynamics of an ice layer over a turbulent stream of warm water using numerical simulations. At low water speeds, characteristic streamwise undulations appear, which can be explained by the Reynolds analogy between…

The flow within an oscillatory boundary layer, which approximates the flow generated by propagating sea waves of small amplitude close to the bottom, is simulated numerically by integrating Navier-Stokes and continuity equations. The bottom…

A fluid between two spheres, concentric or not, at different temperatures will flow in the presence of a constant gravitational force. Although there is no possible hydrostatic state, energy transport is dominated by diffusion if…

We theoretically study the self-propulsion of a thin (slender) colloid driven by asymmetric chemical reactions on its surface at vanishing Reynolds number. Using the method of matched asymptotic expansions, we obtain the colloid…

We investigate the flow around an oscillating nearly-spherical particle at low, yet non-vanishing, Reynolds numbers, and the potential resulting locomotion. We analytically demonstrate that no net motion can arise up to order one in Re and…

Both natural and artificial small-scale swimmers may often self-propel in environments subject to complex geometrical constraints. While most past theoretical work on low-Reynolds number locomotion addressed idealised geometrical…

Swimming in curved spacetimes is a phenomenon whereby free bodies in curved spacetimes are able to propel themselves by performing cyclic internal motions. When originally proposed, it was further suggested that, in the limit of fast…

Fluid-structure interactions are ubiquitous in nature and technology. However, the systems are often so complex that numerical simulations or ad hoc assumptions must be used to gain insight into the details of the complex interactions…

Conventionally, a microscopic particle that performs a reciprocal stroke cannot move through its environment. This is because at small scales, the response of simple Newtonian fluids is purely viscous and flows are time-reversible. We show…