Artificial bacterial flagella for micromanipulation

Abstract

This article presents an overview of recent developments in artificial bacterial flagella (ABFs) and discusses challenges and opportunities in pursuing applications. These helical swimmers possess several advantageous characteristics, such as high swimming velocity and precise motion control indicating their potential for diverse applications. One application is the manipulation of small objects within liquid, which is the focus of this review. Preliminary results have shown that ABFs are capable of performing microobject manipulation either directly by mechanical contact or indirectly by generating a localized fluid flow. The latter approach can be used for batch manipulation without direct contact, also implying possibilities for flow control in lab-on-a-chip systems. Miniaturized helical swimmers are also promising for biomedical applications, such as targeted drug delivery and implantation or removal of tissues and other objects.