Micro and Nano Robotics

The mechanism of spatial pattern transition in motile bacterial collectives

The paper shows how spatial pattern transitions in Myxococcus xanthus swarms occur through local alignment and cell reversal, without genetic changes, creating stable spatial domains.

Cell-body curvature modulates stall frequency to enhance Vibrio cholerae swimming and chemotaxis through hydrogels

This study shows that curved Vibrio cholerae cells swim more efficiently through mucus-like hydrogels than straight mutants, with curvature enhancing chemotaxis by reducing stalls.

Artificial DNA-nano/microparticle motors: Factors governing speed, run-length, and unidirectionality revealed by geometry-based kinetic simulations

This study uses geometry-based kinetic simulations to analyze how particle size affects the speed, run-length, and unidirectionality of DNA-nano/microparticle motors.

Bio-Inspired Ultrasound-Driven Ultrafast Soft Microgripper

This paper develops a bio-inspired ultrasound-driven soft microgripper that enables ultrafast and precise manipulation of delicate objects.

Collective bacterial condensation is fundamentally constrained by the emergence of active turbulence

This study shows that bacterial condensation is limited by active turbulence caused by correlated swimming, and that porous environments enhance condensation by suppressing this turbulence.

Enzyme-powered DNA origami nanostructures for enhanced mucosal diffusion

This study demonstrates DNA origami nanostructures that use enzymes to enhance mucosal diffusion, showing improved mobility in mucus through controlled enzyme placement.

Geometrical preference of anchoring sites in the unicellular organism Stentor coeruleus

This study shows that the ciliate Stentor coeruleus prefers to anchor in narrow regions with specific geometrical features, using morphological changes and hydrodynamic interactions to navigate microenvironments without visual cues.

Data-driven inference of digital twins for high-throughput phenotyping of motile and light-responsive microorganisms

The paper develops a platform to infer digital twins of light-responsive microorganisms using imaging data, enabling accurate simulation of their movement behaviors.

Bacteria break through one-micrometer-square passages by flagellar wrapping

This study shows how bacteria use flagellar wrapping to move through narrow passages, with hook flexibility being essential for this movement.

Spontaneous spatial sorting by cell shape in growing colonies of rod-like bacteria

This study shows that rod-like bacteria with different shapes sort spatially in growing colonies, with longer cells moving to the periphery due to mechanical interactions and nematic order.

Chlamylipo, a Chlamydomonas-in-liposome microswimmer: self-propelled swimming and associated lipid membrane flow

This paper introduces chlamylipo, a bio-hybrid microswimmer using Chlamydomonas reinhardtii in a liposome, demonstrating propulsion through membrane deformation and fluid dynamics.

Light-dependent switching of circling handedness in microswimmer navigation

This study shows Chlamydomonas reinhardtii switches swimming trajectory handedness in response to light intensity through flagellar beat plane reorientation.

Bacterial motility patterns vary smoothly with spatial confinement and disorder

This study shows bacterial motility patterns smoothly transition between run-and-tumble and hop-and-trap behaviors across varying spatial confinement and disorder.

Active segregation in binary mixtures under flow

This study shows motile bacteria induce segregation of non-motile cells in confined flow, leading to asymmetric biofilm formation through a physical mechanism involving rheotactic drift and sedimentation.

Swashing motility: A novel propulsion-independent mechanism for surface migration in Salmonella and E. coli

This paper identifies a novel surface motility mechanism in Salmonella and E. coli called 'swashing' that does not require flagellar propulsion and is driven by fermentation-induced osmotic gradients.

Spatial self-organization of confined bacterial suspensions

This study investigates how confinement affects bacterial populations by showing that Escherichia coli in quasi-2D droplets self-organize into a core-shell structure driven by oxygen dynamics and motility.

3D Agent-based modeling without chemical signaling recreatescollective behaviors seen in Myxococcus xanthus colonies

This study uses 3D agent-based simulations to show that changes in cell motility, without chemical signaling, can recreate collective behaviors and fruiting body formation in M. xanthus colonies.

Cooperative mixing through hydrodynamic interactions in Stylonychia lemnae

This study experimentally examines how Stylonychia lemnae ciliates form feeding clusters, showing that hydrodynamic interactions enhance mixing and resource detection through collective flows.

Capillary interactions drive the self-organization of bacterial colonies

This study shows capillary forces organize bacterial colonies into dense, nematic groups and influence their collective dynamics.

A forward-engineered muscle tissue driven soft robotic swimmer

The paper builds a biohybrid robot with muscle-driven tail motion to study swimming dynamics and muscle adaptation, achieving speeds surpassing low-Reynolds number predictions.

Model-Based Reinforcement Learning for Ultrasound-Driven Autonomous Microrobots

This paper develops an AI-controlled ultrasound-driven microrobot using model-based reinforcement learning, achieving high success rates in navigation and real-time manipulation in complex environments.

Adaptation-induced oscillatory phototaxis and emergence of ordered density bands in the microswimmer Chlamydomonas reinhardtii

The paper studies oscillatory phototaxis in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, showing how adaptation leads to collective density band formation under constant light.

Run-and-tumble dynamics of E. coli is governed by its mechanical properties

The paper models E. coli run-and-tumble behavior using fluid dynamics simulations and experiments, finding that flagellar rigidity and arrangement, not number, primarily influence motility.

Modelling trypanosome motility

This study develops a trypanosome model and uses hydrodynamic simulations to analyze how mechanical features affect swimming behavior, showing the importance of body elasticity and flagellum dynamics.

Controlling the synchronization and symmetry breaking of coupled bacterial pili on active biofilm carpets

This study investigates collective oscillations in bacterial biofilms, showing that nonreciprocal pili activity and aging-related frequency gradients drive directional wave propagation and symmetry breaking.

Force Generation by Enhanced Diffusion in Enzyme-Loaded Vesicles

This study investigates how enhanced diffusion in enzyme-loaded vesicles creates pressure gradients leading to deformation and self-propulsion in substrate gradients.

De-novo design of actively spinning and gyrating spherical micro-vesicles

This paper designs autonomous spherical micro-rotors using Giant Unilamellar Vesicles and enzymes to achieve spontaneous symmetry-breaking and diverse movements.

Synchronization and metachronal waves of elastic cilia caused by transient viscous flow

This study models elastic cilia coupled by transient viscous flow, showing synchronization and metachronal waves influenced by vorticity diffusion.

A dynamical analysis of the alignment mechanism between two interacting cells

This paper analyzes the alignment mechanism of two interacting cells using a dynamical system approach, finding that self-propulsion and overlap avoidance interact to generate alignment.

Medium-assisted tumbling controls bacteria exploration in a complex fluid

This study investigates how E. coli bacteria navigate complex non-Newtonian fluids, finding that mechanical properties of the medium override their natural motility strategies.