Related papers: Microscopic Engine Powered by Critical Demixing
The heat engine, a machine that extracts useful work from thermal sources, is one of the basic theoretical constructs and fundamental applications of classical thermodynamics. The classical description of a heat engine does not include…
Self-propelling bacteria are a dream of nano-technology. These unicellular organisms are not just capable of living and reproducing, but they can swim very efficiently, sense the environment and look for food, all packaged in a body…
Biophotonic techniques are growing in rapid rhythms enabling the monitoring of subcellular structures and non-invasive theranostic interventions in cancer and autoimmune diseases. The integration of Biophotonics with nanotechnology and…
We model a microscopic heat engine as a particle hopping on a one-dimensional lattice in a periodic sawtooth potential, with or without load, assisted by the thermal kicks it gets from alternately placed hot and cold thermal baths. We find…
Biomedical and biochemical processes in paper-based microfluidic devices often deal with mixing of two analytes to perform important functions. Uniform mixing of analytes in paper matrix is a challenging proposition, often necessitating…
The inexorable miniaturisation of technologies, the relentless drive to improve efficiency and the enticing prospect of boosting performance through quantum effects are all compelling reasons to investigate microscopic machines. Thermal…
The ever-growing field of microfluidics requires precise and flexible control over fluid flow at the micro- and nanoscales. Current constraints demand a variety of controllable components for performing different operations inside closed…
Nucleation, commonly associated with discontinuous transformations between metastable and stable phases, is crucial in fields as diverse as atmospheric science and nanoscale electronics. Traditionally, it is considered a microscopic process…
Precise manipulation of small objects using light holds transformative potential across diverse fields. While research in optical trapping and manipulation predominantly relies on the attraction of solid matter to light intensity maxima,…
A scheme of the scanning rotational microscope is designed. This scheme is based on using carbon nanotubes simultaneously as a probe tip and as a bolt/nut pair which converts translational displacements of two piezo actuators into pure…
It is hard to imagine with the progress in robotics that current approaches are lacking somewhere, yet they will not be applicable to the majority of robots in the near future. We are on the verge of two new transitions that will transform…
We study the mechanical and thermodynamic properties of different traffic models for kinesin which are relevant in biological and experimental contexts. We find that motor-motor interactions play a fundamental role by enhancing the…
Computational hardware designed to mimic biological neural networks holds the promise to resolve the drastically growing global energy demand of artificial intelligence. A wide variety of hardware concepts have been proposed, and among…
We consider the Molecular Opto-mechanical systems in back-action amplification of single molecule Raman imaging. Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) is mapped into the dissipative cavity opto-mechanics system of coupled resonators. We…
We review recent advances in the design, synthesis, and modeling of active fluids. Active fluids have been at the center of many technological innovations and theoretical advances over the past two decades. Research on this new class of…
Many cell functions are accomplished thanks to intracellular transport mechanisms of macromolecules along filaments. Molecular motors such as dynein or kinesin are proteins playing a primary role in these processes. The behavior of such…
Controlled fabrication of nanopores in atomically thin two-dimensional material offers the means to create robust membranes needed for ion transport, nanofiltration, and DNA sensing. Techniques for creating nanopores have relied upon either…
Living systems are capable of locomotion, reconfiguration, and replication. To perform these tasks, cells spatiotemporally coordinate the interactions of force-generating, "active" molecules that create and manipulate non-equilibrium…
Photoactive proteins absorb light and undergo structural changes that enable them to perform essential biological functions. These proteins are critical for understanding light-induced biological processes, making them important in…
We construct a microscopic model of low-dissipation engines by driving a Brownian particle in a time-dependent harmonic potential. Shortcuts to adiabaticity and shortcuts to isothermality are introduced to realize the adiabatic and…