Deformable microswimmer in a swirl: capturing and scattering dynamics

Settling mode of a bottom-heavy squirmer in a narrow vessel

The lattice Boltzmann-immersed boundary (IB-LB) method is used to numerically simulate the sedimentation motion of a single two-dimensional, bottom-heavy squirmer in a narrow vessel. The effects of the swimming Reynolds number Re_s = 0.1-3, eccentricity distance l = 0.15d-0.75d, and density ratio of squirmer to fluid γ = 1.1-2.0 on the settlement motion characteristics are investigated and analyzed. The results showed that four settling modes exist: vertical motion, unilateral oscillation, oscillation, and tilt. The bottom-heavy neutral squirmer and puller settle in the vessel during vertical motion when Re_s is 0.1-1.5. By increasing Re_s and swimming strength |β|, the bottom-heavy squirmer becomes more self-driven, shifting its settling mode from vertical motion to unilateral oscillation or oscillation. Increasing l or |β| does not affect the bottom-heavy neutral squirmer and puller's vertical settling mode but shifts the bottom-heavy pusher's settling mode from unilateral oscillation to oscillation or oscillation to unilateral oscillation. Similarly, altering γ or |β| has no impact on the eccentric neutral squirmer and puller's settling mode; however, pushers will switch from oscillation mode to attraction mode or from oscillation mode to tilt mode. Additionally, it was found that after the squirmer collided with the bottom wall, the bottom-heavy squirmer settled at the bottom of the vessel in a different state of motion.

Quantitative analysis of the gain in probability of escaping for ideal phototactic swimmers due to chaotic dynamics

We study the dynamics of ideal phototactic swimmers in a steady two-dimensional model flow with transport barriers. We consider a distant light source, in which case the self-propulsion velocity of the swimmers is, at any instant, along a predetermined direction. The probability of transport along that direction emerges from the competing effects of the swimmers' self-propulsion and the flow's transport barriers. For swimmers bounded to have the same time average self-propulsion speed, temporal modulation of that speed increases the probability of escaping due to the formation of a stochastic layer which fosters transport. We use separatrix-map techniques to calculate the gain in the probability of escaping.

Active particles in noninertial frames: How to self-propel on a carousel

Typically the motion of self-propelled active particles is described in a quiescent environment establishing an inertial frame of reference. Here we assume that friction, self-propulsion, and fluctuations occur relative to a noninertial frame and thereby the active Brownian motion model is generalized to noninertial frames. First, analytical solutions are presented for the overdamped case, both for linear swimmers and for circle swimmers. For a frame rotating with constant angular velocity ("carousel"), the resulting noise-free trajectories in the static laboratory frame are trochoids if these are circles in the rotating frame. For systems governed by inertia, such as vibrated granulates or active complex plasmas, centrifugal and Coriolis forces become relevant. For both linear and circling self-propulsion, these forces lead to out-spiraling trajectories which for long times approach a spira mirabilis. This implies that a self-propelled particle will typically leave a rotating carousel. A navigation strategy is proposed to avoid this expulsion, by adjusting the self-propulsion direction at will. For a particle, initially quiescent in the rotating frame, it is shown that this strategy only works if the initial distance to the rotation center is smaller than a critical radius R_{c} which scales with the self-propulsion velocity. Possible experiments to verify the theoretical predictions are discussed.

Collective sedimentation of squirmers under gravity

Active particles, which interact hydrodynamically, display a remarkable variety of emergent collective phenomena. We use squirmers to model spherical microswimmers and explore the collective behavior of thousands of them under the influence of strong gravity using the method of multi-particle collision dynamics for simulating fluid flow. The sedimentation profile depends on the ratio of swimming to sedimentation velocity as well as on the squirmer type. It shows closely packed squirmer layers at the bottom and a highly dynamic region with exponential density dependence towards the top. The mean vertical orientation of the squirmers strongly depends on height. For swimming velocities larger than the sedimentation velocity, squirmers show strong convection in the exponential region. We quantify the strength of convection and the extent of convection cells by the vertical current density and its current dipole, which are large for neutral squirmers as well as for weak pushers and pullers.

Swinging motion of active deformable particles in Poiseuille flow

Dynamics of active deformable particles in an external Poiseuille flow is investigated. To make the analysis general, we employ time-evolution equations derived from symmetry considerations that take into account an elliptical shape deformation. First, we clarify the relation of our model to that of rigid active particles. Then, we study the dynamical modes that active deformable particles exhibit by changing the strength of the external flow. We emphasize the difference between the active particles that tend to self-propel parallel to the elliptical shape deformation and those self-propelling perpendicularly. In particular, a swinging motion around the centerline far from the channel walls is discussed in detail.

Rapid expulsion of microswimmers by a vortical flow

Interactions of microswimmers with their fluid environment are exceptionally complex. Macroscopic shear flow alters swimming trajectories in a highly nontrivial way and results in dramatic reduction of viscosity and heterogeneous bacterial distributions. Here we report on experimental and theoretical studies of rapid expulsion of microswimmers, such as motile bacteria, by a vortical flow created by a rotating microparticle. We observe a formation of a macroscopic depletion area in a high-shear region, in the vicinity of a microparticle. The rapid migration of bacteria from the shear-rich area is caused by a vortical structure of the flow rather than intrinsic random fluctuations of bacteria orientations, in stark contrast to planar shear flow. Our mathematical model reveals that expulsion is a combined effect of motility and alignment by a vortical flow. Our findings offer a novel approach for manipulation of motile microorganisms and shed light on bacteria–flow interactions.

The control of microswimmers such as bacteria is important for emerging applications of active bioinspired materials. Here, the authors demonstrate the use of vortical shear to expel suspended motile bacteria from the vicinity of a rotating microparticle.

Getting drowned in a swirl: Deformable bead-spring model microswimmers in external flow fields

Deformability is a central feature of many types of microswimmers, e.g., for artificially generated self-propelled droplets. Here, we analyze deformable bead-spring microswimmers in an externally imposed solvent flow field as simple theoretical model systems. We focus on their behavior in a circular swirl flow in two spatial dimensions. Linear (straight) two-bead swimmers are found to circle around the swirl with a slight drift to the outside with increasing activity. In contrast to that, we observe for triangular three-bead or squarelike four-bead swimmers a tendency of being drawn into the swirl and finally getting drowned, although a radial inward component is absent in the flow field. During one cycle around the swirl, the self-propulsion direction of an active triangular or squarelike swimmer remains almost constant, while their orbits become deformed exhibiting an "egglike" shape. Over time, the swirl flow induces slight net rotations of these swimmer types, which leads to net rotations of the egg-shaped orbits. Interestingly, in certain cases, the orbital rotation changes sense when the swimmer approaches the flow singularity. Our predictions can be verified in real-space experiments on artificial microswimmers.