Using Assembly Guided by Particle Position and Shape to Build Advanced Microactuators Modulated by DNA Origami
Automation, Mechatronics, Control Systems, Intelligent Technical Systems, Robotics
Experimental Condensed Matter Physics
Microsystems
Final Report Abstract
Small, micro-sized magnets were assembled together under magnetic fields to make microrobots that swim akin to sperm i.e. by wagging a thin appendage to create thrust. Just like sperm, many of these robots can swim together and an analysis of their swimming alone and in populations was undertaken. A study linking microswimmer design to performance was performed and design rules from which to create a fast swimmer were extracted. Additionally, design rules to make a swimmer that can switch direction depending on how fast its appendages beat were obtained. Using the specificity of the base-pair interactions of DNA 3D structures with nanoscale resolution were prepared from a loop single stranded DNA tied together with shorter ‘staple’ strands. These structures were prepared as artificial flagella to mimic the thrust creation of eukaryotic cells. Additionally, they were used to tie together magnetic modules to make complex robust micromagnetic structures that can be actuated with external fields. Micro-sized magnetic triangles were actuated with fluctuating magnetic fields and their locomotion analyzed and resultingly understood in terms of microscale friction. This study provided new insights into how ballistic behavior can be engineered on the microscale without using beating appendages. Most notable was the apparent stability of the magnetic microswimmers to magnetic aggregation with each other. It seems that hydrodynamic interactions on their locomotion impart a long distance repulsion sufficiently strong to resist magnetic attractions.
Publications
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Programmable Design and Performance of Modular Magnetic Microswimmers. Adv. Mater. 2021, 33, 2006237
Pauer, C., du Roure, O., Heuvingh, J., Liedl, T., Tavacoli, J.
