Reconfigurable Swarms of Nematic Colloids Controlled by Photoactivated Surface Patterns |
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Authors: | Sergi Hernàndez‐Navarro Dr Pietro Tierno Prof Joan Anton Farrera Prof Jordi Ignés‐Mullol Prof Francesc Sagués |
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Institution: | 1. Department of Physical Chemistry, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, 08028 Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain);2. Institut de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, 08028 Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain);3. Department of Structure and Constituents of Matter, Universitat de Barcelona, Avinguda Diagonal 647, 08028 Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain);4. Department of Organic Chemistry, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, 08028 Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain) |
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Abstract: | Different phoretic driving mechanisms have been proposed for the transport of solid or liquid microscopic inclusions in integrated chemical processes. It is now shown that a substrate that was chemically modified with photosensitive self‐assembled monolayers enables the direct control of the assembly and transport of large ensembles of micrometer‐sized particles and drops that were dispersed in a thin layer of anisotropic fluid. This strategy separates particle driving, which was realized by AC electrophoresis, and steering, which was achieved by elastic modulation of the nematic host fluid. Inclusions respond individually or in collective modes following arbitrary reconfigurable paths that were imprinted by irradiation with UV or blue light. Relying solely on generic material properties, the proposed procedure is versatile enough for the development of applications that involve either inanimate or living materials. |
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Keywords: | colloids electrophoresis liquid crystals microreactors self‐assembly |
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