相关论文: A bubble-powered micro-rotor: conception, manufact…
We have designed and characterized micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) for applications at low temperatures. The mechanical resonators were fabricated using a surface micromachining process. The devices consist of a pair of parallel…
Microsystems become part of everyday life but their application is restricted by lack of strong and fast motors (actuators) converting energy into motion. For example, widespread internal combustion engines cannot be scaled down because…
We describe the production and characterization of microelectromagnets made for trapping and manipulating atomic ensembles. The devices consist of 7 fabricated parallel copper conductors 3 micrometer thick, 25mm long, with widths ranging…
Magnetic elastomers deform under a magnetic field, working as a soft actuator. Untethered microbot made of magnetic elastomers have great potentials in performing medical tasks inside human body as mini doctors. However, the lack of a…
We present a new unimorph actuator for micro-robotics, which is driven by thin shape-memory alloy (SMA) wires. Using a passive-capillary-alignment technique and existing SMA-microsystem fabrication methods, we developed an actuator that is…
Recently, we demonstrated that the local heating of degassed water can generate water vapor microbubbles and induce a rapid flow around the bubble. Although flow generation involves the self-excited oscillation of bubbles at a local heating…
A popular method to induce synthetic propulsion at the microscale is to use the forces created by surface-produced gas bubbles inside the asymmetric body of a catalytic swimmer (referred to in the literature as microrocket). Gas bubbles…
Biological functions in each animal cell depend on coordinated operations of a wide variety of molecular motors. Some of the these motors transport cargo to their respective destinations whereas some others are mobile workshops which…
Superparamagnetic colloidal particles can be reversibly assembled into wheel-like structures called microwheels ($\mu$wheels) which roll on surfaces due to friction and can be driven at user-controlled speeds and directions using rotating…
The micromixing process in microfluidic devices is of central importance in quite a few applications, with microfluidic studies on carbon capture and environmental monitoring being two examples. High surface area to volume ratio in…
Oscillatory flow in confined spaces is central to understanding physiological flows and rational design of synthetic periodic-actuation based micromachines. Using theory and experiments on oscillating flows generated through a laser-induced…
A magnetic field rotating on the free surface of a ferrofluid layer is shown to induce considerable fluid motion toward the direction the field is rolling. The measured flow velocity i) increases with the square of the magnetic field…
We discuss constraints on the rates of stirring and dissipation of MHD turbulence in molecular clouds. Recent MHD simulations suggest that turbulence in clouds decays rapidly, thus providing a significant source of energy input,…
We report a detailed experimental characterization of the periodic bubbling regimes that take place in an axisymmetric air-water jet when the inner air stream is forced by periodic modulations of the pressure at the upstream air feeding…
Powered by acoustics, existing therapeutic and diagnostic procedures will become less invasive and new methods will become available that have never been available before. Acoustically driven microrobot navigation based on microbubbles is a…
Differentially rotating flows of unmagnetized, highly conducting plasmas have been created in the Plasma Couette Experiment. Previously, hot-cathodes have been used to control plasma rotation by a stirring technique [C. Collins et al.,…
The development of rotary nanomotors is crucial for further advancing NEMS technology. In this work, we report innovative design, assembly, and rotation of ordered arrays of nanomotors. The nanomotors were bottom-up assembled from nanoscale…
An ion-exchange-resin-based microfluidic pump is introduced that utilizes trace amounts of ions to generate fluid flows. We show experimentally that our pump operates in almost deionized water for periods exceeding 24h and induces fluid…
True microrobots, in contrast with externally controlled microparticles, must harvest or carry their own source of energy, as well as their own (preferably programmable) microcontroller of actuators for locomotion, using information…
Water electrolysis performed in microsystems with a fast change of voltage polarity produces optically invisible nanobubbles containing H2 and O2 gases. In this form the gases are able to the reverse reaction of water formation. Here we…