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arXiv · 1808.06520

Dipolar thermocapillary motor and swimmer

Valeri Frumkin·Moran Bercovici
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Abstract

We present a theoretical description and an experimental realization of a thermocapillary dipole induced in a Hele-Shaw cell under a steady temperature gradient. We demonstrate experimentally how several dipoles can be superposed in order to create various 2D flow patterns, and how a confined dipole can act as a thermocapillary motor for driving fluids in microfluidic circuits. In addition, we show how the principles behind the thermocapillary dipole can be applied in order to drive thermocapillary swimmers on fluid-liquid interfaces.

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Valeri Frumkin, Moran Bercovici. 2019-02-10. Dipolar thermocapillary motor and swimmer. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevfluids.4.074002

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