Nano Systems Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA.
Nat Commun. 2021 Aug 5;12(1):4724. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-24996-8.
We introduce highly programmable microscale swimmers driven by the Marangoni effect (Marangoni microswimmers) that can self-propel on the surface of water. Previous studies on Marangoni swimmers have shown the advantage of self-propulsion without external energy source or mechanical systems, by taking advantage of direct conversion from power source materials to mechanical energy. However, current developments on Marangoni microswimmers have limitations in their fabrication, thereby hindering their programmability and precise mass production. By introducing a photopatterning method, we generated Marangoni microswimmers with multiple functional parts with distinct material properties in high throughput. Furthermore, various motions such as time-dependent direction change and disassembly of swimmers without external stimuli are programmed into the Marangoni microswimmers.
我们介绍了一种由 Marangoni 效应驱动的高度可编程微尺度游泳者（Marangoni 微游泳者），它可以在水面上自行推进。以前关于 Marangoni 游泳者的研究表明，通过将电源材料直接转换为机械能，可以在没有外部能源或机械系统的情况下，利用自推进的优势。然而，目前 Marangoni 微游泳者的发展在制造方面存在局限性，从而阻碍了它们的可编程性和精确的大规模生产。通过引入光图案化方法，我们以高通量的方式生成了具有不同材料特性的多功能部分的 Marangoni 微游泳者。此外，我们还将各种运动，如无外部刺激的时间相关方向变化和游泳者的拆卸，编程到 Marangoni 微游泳者中。
