Active Boomerangs Driven by Electrohydrodynamic Flows

ORAL

Abstract

Recent work shows that colloidal dimers with asymmetric geometric or interfacial properties can propel due to the unbalanced electrohydrodynamic (EHD) flow around the particles, offering a new avenue to engineer active particles. In this work, we present experimental studies on the active motion behaviors of boomerang-shaped colloidal particles driven by the EHD flow. We show that by breaking the symmetry of particle shapes, the boomerang particles exhibit several different modes of active motions which can be either translation and/or rotation, and these modes of motions can be fine-tuned or switched by the frequency and initial phase of the electrical fields.

*Funding Acknowledgement: NSF CMMI-1663394and CBET 1454095

–

Presenters

  • Qi-Huo Wei

    • Kent State University
    • Advanced Material and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, OH44242
    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, 44242, USA
    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute and Chemical Physics Interdisciplinary Program and Physics Department, Kent State University
    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State Univeristy

Authors

  • Qi-Huo Wei

    • Kent State University
    • Advanced Material and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, OH44242
    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, 44242, USA
    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute and Chemical Physics Interdisciplinary Program and Physics Department, Kent State University
    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State Univeristy

  • Kelley Woehl

    • Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO 80401

  • Miao Jiang

    • Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, 44242, USA
    • Advanced Material and Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, OH44242

  • Ning Wu

    • Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO 80401

  • Clemens Bechinger

    • Department of Physics, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany