Related papers: Mechanochemical Active Ratchet
Bimetallic rod-shaped nanomotors swim autonomously in hydrogen peroxide solutions. Here we present a scaling analysis, computational simulations, and experimental data that show that the nanomotor locomotion is driven by fluid slip around…
Continuum simulation is employed to study ion transport and fluid flow through a nanopore in a solid-state membrane under an applied potential drop. Results show the existence of concentration polarization layers on the surfaces of the…
The transport of interacting Brownian particles in a periodic asymmetric (ratchet) substrate is studied numerically. In a zero-temperature regime, the system behaves as a reversible step motor, undergoing multiple sign reversals of the…
We investigate analytically a microfluidic device consisting of a tube with non-uniform but spatially periodic diameter, where a fluid driven back and forth by a pump carries colloidal particles. Although the net flow of the fluid is zero,…
We study by simulation a mixture of active (run-and-tumble) and passive (Brownian) particles with repulsive exclusion interactions in one dimension, subject to a ratchet (smoothed sawtooth) potential. Such a potential is known to rectify…
Typical bodily and environmental fluids encountered by biological swimmers consist of dissolved macromolecules such as proteins and polymers, often rendering them non Newtonian. To mimic such scenarios, we investigate the motion of swimming…
Molecular dynamics studies of nono-sized rigid grains, droplets and bubbles in nano-sized pores indicate that the drag force may have a hydrodynamic form if the moving object is dense and small compared to the pore diameter. Otherwise, the…
Using computer simulations, we study a two-dimensional system of sterically interacting self-mobile run-and-tumble disk-shaped particles with an underlying periodic quasi-one-dimensional asymmetric substrate, and show that a rich variety of…
A simple model for the reaction-driven propulsion of a small device is proposed as a model for (part of) a molecular machine in aqueous media. Motion of the device is driven by an asymmetric distribution of reaction products. The propulsive…
Non-equilibrium dynamics of topological defects can be used as a fundamental propulsion mechanism in microscopic active matter. Here, we demonstrate swimming of topological defect-propelled colloidal particles in (passive) nematic fluids…
The transport properties of a spherical active Brownian particle in a periodic potential under heavy damping are considered. The self-propelled particle is subjected to the asymmetric potential, detailed balance is lost and the particles…
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…
Nanoconfined water plays a key role in nanofluidics, electrochemistry, and catalysis, yet its reactivity remains a matter of debate. Prior studies have reported both enhanced and suppressed water self-dissociation relative to the bulk, but…
Nanofluidics, the field interested in flows at the smallest scales, has grown at a fast pace, reaching an ever finer control offluidic and ionic transport at the molecular level. Still, artificial pores are far from reaching the wealth of…
The electron transport in current-biased superconducting nano-bridges is determined by the motion of the quantum vortex confined in the internal disorder landscape. Here we consider a simple case of a single or two neighbouring linear…
Downsizing microswimmers to the nanoscale, and using light as an externally controlled fuel, are two important goals within the field of active matter. Here we demonstrate using all-atom molecular dynamics simulations that solvation…
Colloidal suspensions of ferromagnetic nano-particles, so-called ferrofluids, are shown to be suitable systems to demonstrate and investigate thermal ratchet behavior: By rectifying thermal fluctuations, angular momentum is transferred to a…
Transport of tracer particles through mesh-like environments such as biological hydrogels and polymer matrices is ubiquitous in nature. These tracers could be passive, such as colloids or active (self-propelled), such as synthetic…
We use molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the displacement of a simple butterfly-like molecular motor inside nanopores of various radii filled with a viscous medium. The medium is modeled with a versatile potential that may be…
Conspectus: The ability to navigate in chemical gradients, called chemotaxis, is crucial for the survival of microorganisms. It allows them to find food and to escape from toxins. Many microorganisms can produce the chemicals to which they…