Related papers: A microfluidic method for passive trapping of sper…
Cellular cargo can be bound to cytoskeletal filaments by one or multiple active or passive molecular motors. Recent experiments have shown that the presence of auxiliary, nondriving motors, results in an enhanced processivity of the cargo,…
Motility is an essential factor for an organism's survival and diversification. With the advent of novel single-cell technologies, analytical frameworks and theoretical methods, we can begin to probe the complex lives of microscopic motile…
Improving coherence is a fundamental challenge in quantum simulation and sensing experiments with trapped ions. Here we discuss, experimentally demonstrate, and estimate the potential impacts of two different protocols that enhance, through…
In a recent computer study, we have shown that the combination of spatially heterogeneous dynamics and kinetic facilitation provides a microscopic explanation for the emergence of excess wings in deeply supercooled liquids. Motivated by…
We analyze the dynamics of a passive colloidal probe immersed in an active bath using an optical trap to study three physical processes: (1) the non-equilibrium fluctuations transferred to the probe by the active bath, (2) the friction…
Microtubule dynamics is largely influenced by nucleotide hydrolysis and the resultant tubulin configuration changes. The GTP cap model has been proposed to interpret the stabilizing mechanism of microtubule growth from the view of…
Many motile cells exhibit migratory behaviors, such as chemotaxis (motion up or down a chemical gradient) or chemokinesis (when speed depends on concentration), which enable them to carry out vital functions including immune response, egg…
The settling of colloidal particles with short-ranged attractions is investigated via highly resolved immersed boundary simulations. At modest volume fractions, we show that inter-colloid attractions lead to clustering that reduces the…
Detention ponds can mitigate flooding and improve water quality by allowing the settlement of pollutants. Typically, they are operated with fully open orifices and weirs (i.e., passive control). Active controls can improve the performance…
Microfluidics, the study of fluids in microscopic channels, has led to important advances in fields as diverse as microelectronics, biotechnology and chemistry. Microfluidic research is primarily based on the use of microfluidic chips,…
Interferometry can completely redirect light, providing the potential for strong and controllable optical forces. However, small particles do not naturally act like interferometric beamsplitters, and the optical scattering from them is not…
Active fluid droplets are a class of soft materials exhibiting autonomous motion sustained by an energy supply. Such systems have been shown to capture motility regimes typical of biological cells and are ideal candidates as building-block…
We numerically study the dynamics of a passive fluid droplet confined within a microchannel whose walls are covered with a thin layer of active gel. The latter represents a fluid of extensile material modelling, for example, a suspension of…
The clustering of self-motile and repulsive particles, so-called motility-induced phase separation (MIPS), is one of the clearest signatures of active physics. Typically, increasing the amplitude of self-motility increases the degree of…
In this paper we report, clarify and broaden various recent efforts to complement the chemistry-centered models of force generation in muscles by mechanics-centered models. The physical mechanisms of interest can be grouped into two…
We propose a conformity-driven reproductive ability in which an individual $i$ is more (less) likely to imitate a neighbor $j$'s strategy if $j$'s strategy is majority (minority) in $i$'s neighborhood. The results on the evolutionary…
Colloidal particles hold promise for mobilizing and removing trapped immiscible fluids from porous media, with implications for key energy and water applications. Most studies focus on accomplishing this goal using particles that can…
We study numerically the hydrodynamics of dip coating from a suspension and report a mechanism for colloidal assembly and pattern formation on smooth and uniform substrates. Below a critical withdrawal speed of the substrate, capillary…
We briefly describe the similarities of the experiments of sperm motion in microfluidic "strictures" by Zafeeani et al. in 2019 (Sci. Adv. 5, eaav21111, 2019) and those by Altshuler et al. in 2013 (Soft Matter 9, 1864, 2013). We shortly…
Using a microfluidic trap, we study the behavior of individual phospholipid vesicles in contact with fatty acids. We show that spontaneous fatty acids insertion inside the bilayer is controlled by the vesicle size, osmotic pressure…