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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Energy Extraction, Or Lack Thereof, Nishanth Gudapati Dec 2023

Energy Extraction, Or Lack Thereof, Nishanth Gudapati

Mathematics

The problem of stability of rotating black holes is the subject of a long standing research program since the 1960s and remains an unresolved problem in general relativity. A major obstacle in the black hole stability problem is that the energy of waves propagating through rotating black holes spacetimes is not necessarily positive-definite, due to the so called ergo-region. This is a serious complication that limits the efficacy of most mathematical techniques. In this expository article, we report that, despite the ergo-region, there exists a positive-definite total energy for axisymmetric Maxwell, gravitational and electrovacuum perturbations of Kerr and Kerr–Newman black …


Stereochemical Engineering Yields A Multifunctional Peptide Macrocycle Inhibitor Of Akt2 By Fine-Tuning Macrocycle-Cell Membrane Interactions, Arundhati Nag, Amirhossein Mafi, Samir Das, Mary Beth Yu, Belen Alvarez-Villalonga, Soo-Kyung Kim, Yapeng Su, William A. Goddard, James R. Heath Dec 2023

Stereochemical Engineering Yields A Multifunctional Peptide Macrocycle Inhibitor Of Akt2 By Fine-Tuning Macrocycle-Cell Membrane Interactions, Arundhati Nag, Amirhossein Mafi, Samir Das, Mary Beth Yu, Belen Alvarez-Villalonga, Soo-Kyung Kim, Yapeng Su, William A. Goddard, James R. Heath

Chemistry

Macrocycle peptides are promising constructs for imaging and inhibiting extracellular, and cell membrane proteins, but their use for targeting intracellular proteins is typically limited by poor cell penetration. We report the development of a cell-penetrant high-affinity peptide ligand targeted to the phosphorylated Ser474 epitope of the (active) Akt2 kinase. This peptide can function as an allosteric inhibitor, an immunoprecipitation reagent, and a live cell immunohistochemical staining reagent. Two cell penetrant stereoisomers were prepared and shown to exhibit similar target binding affinities and hydrophobic character but 2-3-fold different rates of cell penetration. Experimental and computational studies resolved that the ligands’ difference …


Temperature Evolution Of Domains And Intradomain Chirality In 1t- Tas2, Boning Yu, Ghilles Ainouche, Manoj Singh, Bishnu Sharma, James Huber, Michael Boyer Sep 2023

Temperature Evolution Of Domains And Intradomain Chirality In 1t- Tas2, Boning Yu, Ghilles Ainouche, Manoj Singh, Bishnu Sharma, James Huber, Michael Boyer

Physics

We use scanning tunneling microscopy to study the temperature evolution of the atomic-scale properties of the nearly commensurate charge density wave (NC-CDW) state of the low-dimensional material 1T-TaS2. Our measurements at 203, 300, and 354 K, roughly spanning the temperature range of the NC-CDW state, show that while the average CDW periodicity is temperature independent, domaining and the local evolution of the CDW lattice within a domain are temperature dependent. Further, we characterize the temperature evolution of the displacement field associated with the recently discovered intradomain chirality of the NC-CDW state by calculating the local rotation vector. Intradomain chirality throughout …


Dynamics Of Magnetoelastic Robots In Water-Saturated Granular Beds, Animesh Biswas, Trinh Huynh, Balaram Desai, Max Moss, Arshad Kudrolli Sep 2023

Dynamics Of Magnetoelastic Robots In Water-Saturated Granular Beds, Animesh Biswas, Trinh Huynh, Balaram Desai, Max Moss, Arshad Kudrolli

Physics

We investigate the dynamics of a magnetoelastic robot with a dipolar magnetic head and a slender elastic body as it performs undulatory strokes and burrows through water-saturated granular beds. The robot is actuated by an oscillating magnetic field and moves forward when the stroke amplitude increases above a critical threshold. By visualizing the medium, we show that the undulating body fluidizes the bed, resulting in the appearance of a dynamic burrow, which rapidly closes in behind the moving robot as the medium loses energy. We investigate the applicability of Lighthill's elongated body theory of fish locomotion, and estimate the contribution …


Cluster Scaling And Critical Points: A Cautionary Tale, W. Klein, Harvey Gould, Sakib Matin Sep 2023

Cluster Scaling And Critical Points: A Cautionary Tale, W. Klein, Harvey Gould, Sakib Matin

Physics

Many systems in nature are conjectured to exist at a critical point, including the brain and earthquake faults. The primary reason for this conjecture is that the distribution of clusters (avalanches of firing neurons in the brain or regions of slip in earthquake faults) can be described by a power law. Because there are other mechanisms such as 1/f noise that can produce power laws, other criteria that the cluster critical exponents must satisfy can be used to conclude whether or not the observed power-law behavior indicates an underlying critical point rather than an alternate mechanism. We show how a …


Μ-1,6-Dioxo-1,6-Diphenylhexane-3,4-Diolato-Bis[(2,2′-Bipyridine)Chloridocopper(Ii)] Dihydrate A; B; A, Luke Nye, Shane G. Tefler, Mark M. Turnbull Aug 2023

Μ-1,6-Dioxo-1,6-Diphenylhexane-3,4-Diolato-Bis[(2,2′-Bipyridine)Chloridocopper(Ii)] Dihydrate A; B; A, Luke Nye, Shane G. Tefler, Mark M. Turnbull

Chemistry

The reaction of CuCl2 with 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5,6-hexanetetrone and 2,2′-bipyridine (bipy) in ethanol gave crystals of the corresponding bimetallic complex, [Cu2(C18H12O4)Cl2(C10H8N2)2]·2H2O. The molecule is centrosymmetric with each CuII ion coordinated to two oxygen atoms from the tetronediate, two nitrogen atoms from a bipy ligand and one coordinated chloride ion. A water molecule of crystallization forms hydrogen bonds to the chloride ions, linking the molecules into a chain parallel to the bc-face diagonal. © 2023 The Author(s).


Face Readers: The Frontier Of Computer Vision And Math Learning, Beverly Woolf, Margrit Betke, Hao Yu, Sarah Adel Bargal, Ivan Arroyo, John J. Magee Iv, Danielle Allessio, William Rebelsky Jul 2023

Face Readers: The Frontier Of Computer Vision And Math Learning, Beverly Woolf, Margrit Betke, Hao Yu, Sarah Adel Bargal, Ivan Arroyo, John J. Magee Iv, Danielle Allessio, William Rebelsky

Computer Science

The future of AI-assisted individualized learning includes computer vision to inform intelligent tutors and teachers about student affect, motivation and performance. Facial expression recognition is essential in recognizing subtle differences when students ask for hints or fail to solve problems. Facial features and classification labels enable intelligent tutors to predict students’ performance and recommend activities. Videos can capture students’ faces and model their effort and progress; machine learning classifiers can support intelligent tutors to provide interventions. One goal of this research is to support deep dives by teachers to identify students’ individual needs through facial expression and to provide immediate …


Computational Model Of Twisted Elastic Ribbons, Madelyn Leembruggen, Jovana Andrejevic, Arshad Kudrolli, Chris H. Rycroft Jul 2023

Computational Model Of Twisted Elastic Ribbons, Madelyn Leembruggen, Jovana Andrejevic, Arshad Kudrolli, Chris H. Rycroft

Physics

We develop an irregular lattice mass-spring model to simulate and study the deformation modes of a thin elastic ribbon as a function of applied end-to-end twist and tension. Our simulations reproduce all reported experimentally observed modes, including transitions from helicoids to longitudinal wrinkles, creased helicoids and loops with self-contact, and transverse wrinkles to accordion self-folds. Our simulations also show that the twist angles at which the primary longitudinal and transverse wrinkles appear are well described by various analyses of the Föppl-von Kármán equations, but the characteristic wavelength of the longitudinal wrinkles has a more complex relationship to applied tension than …


Density-Mediated Spin Correlations Drive Edge-To-Bulk Flow Transition In Active Chiral Matter, Alexander P. Petroff, Christopher Whittington, Arshad Kudrolli Jul 2023

Density-Mediated Spin Correlations Drive Edge-To-Bulk Flow Transition In Active Chiral Matter, Alexander P. Petroff, Christopher Whittington, Arshad Kudrolli

Physics

We demonstrate that edge currents develop in active chiral matter due to boundary shielding over a wide range of densities corresponding to a gas, fluid, and crystal. The system is composed of spinning disk-shaped grains with chirally arranged tilted legs confined in a circular vibrating chamber. The edge currents are shown to increasingly drive circulating bulk flows with area fraction as percolating clusters develop due to increasing spin-coupling between neighbors mediated by frictional contacts. Edge currents are observed even in the dilute limit. While, at low area fraction, the average flux vanishes except within a distance that is of the …


Crystal Chemistry, Optic And Magnetic Characterizations Of A New Copper Based Material Templated By Hexahydrodiazepine, Mansoura Bourwina, Rawia Msalmi, Sandra Walha, Mark M. Turnbull, Thierry Roisnel, Ahlem Guesmi, Ammar Houas, Naoufel Ben Hamadi, Houcine Naïli May 2023

Crystal Chemistry, Optic And Magnetic Characterizations Of A New Copper Based Material Templated By Hexahydrodiazepine, Mansoura Bourwina, Rawia Msalmi, Sandra Walha, Mark M. Turnbull, Thierry Roisnel, Ahlem Guesmi, Ammar Houas, Naoufel Ben Hamadi, Houcine Naïli

Chemistry

Crystals of the new organic-inorganic material (DAP-H2)[CuBr4] (1); (DAP = hexahydrodiazepine (C5H14N2)) were successfully synthesized by slow evaporation and characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, thermal analysis, UV-Vis-NIR diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, and magnetic measurements. X-ray investigation demonstrates that 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/c. The supramolecular crystal structure of 1 is guided by several types of hydrogen bonding which connect anions and cations together into a three-dimensional network. The optical band gap was determined by diffuse reflectance spectroscopy to be 1.78 eV for a direct allowed transition, implying that …


Quantum Phases Of Lattice Dipolar Bosons Coupled To A High-Finesse Cavity, Yaghmorassene Hebib, Chao Zhang, Jin Yang, Barbara Capogrosso-Sansone May 2023

Quantum Phases Of Lattice Dipolar Bosons Coupled To A High-Finesse Cavity, Yaghmorassene Hebib, Chao Zhang, Jin Yang, Barbara Capogrosso-Sansone

Physics

Two types of long-range interactions, dipolar interaction and cavity-mediated interaction, lead to exotic quantum phases. Both interactions were realized and observed in optical lattice setups. Here, we study quantum phases of dipolar bosons trapped in optical lattices and coupled to a high-finesse cavity where both dipolar interaction and cavity-mediated interaction coexist. We perform quantum Monte Carlo simulations and find that the checkerboard solid is enhanced and the checkerboard supersolid phase can exist in a wide range of densities (e.g., 0.27≲n≲0.73). Our unbiased numerical results suggest that both solid and supersolid phases can be achieved experimentally with magnetic atoms coupled to …


Building Credibility, Trust, And Safety On Video-Sharing Platforms, Shuo Niu, Zhicong Lu, Amy X. Zhang, Jie Cai, Carla F. Griggio, Hendrick Heuer Apr 2023

Building Credibility, Trust, And Safety On Video-Sharing Platforms, Shuo Niu, Zhicong Lu, Amy X. Zhang, Jie Cai, Carla F. Griggio, Hendrick Heuer

Computer Science

Video-sharing platforms (VSPs) such as YouTube, TikTok, and Twitch attract millions of users and have become influential information sources, especially among the young generation. Video creators and live streamers make videos to engage viewers and form online communities. VSP celebrities obtain monetary benefits through monetization programs and affiliated markets. However, there is a growing concern that user-generated videos are becoming a vehicle for spreading misinformation and controversial content. Creators may make inappropriate content for attention and financial benefits. Some other creators also face harassment and attack. This workshop seeks to bring together a group of HCI scholars to brainstorm technical …


Finsler Pp-Waves And The Penrose Limit, Amir Babak Aazami, Miguel Ángel Javaloyes, Marcus C. Werner Mar 2023

Finsler Pp-Waves And The Penrose Limit, Amir Babak Aazami, Miguel Ángel Javaloyes, Marcus C. Werner

Mathematics

We extend the notion of a Lorentzian pp-wave to that of Finsler spacetimes by providing a coordinate-independent definition of a Finsler pp-wave with respect to the Chern connection; our definition also includes the special case of a plane wave. This treatment introduces suitable lightlike coordinates, in analogy with the Lorentzian case, and utilizes the anisotropic calculus recently developed by one of the authors. We then extend Penrose’s “plane wave limit” to the setting of Finsler spacetimes. New examples of such Finsler pp-waves are also presented. © 2023, The Author(s).


Synthesis, Structural, Magnetic And Computational Studies Of A One-Dimensional Ferromagnetic Cu(Ii) Chain Assembled From A New Schiff Base Ligand, Anne Worrell, Gabriele Delle Monache, Mark M. Turnbull, Jeremy M. Rawson, Theocharis C. Stamatatos, Melanie Pilkington Mar 2023

Synthesis, Structural, Magnetic And Computational Studies Of A One-Dimensional Ferromagnetic Cu(Ii) Chain Assembled From A New Schiff Base Ligand, Anne Worrell, Gabriele Delle Monache, Mark M. Turnbull, Jeremy M. Rawson, Theocharis C. Stamatatos, Melanie Pilkington

Chemistry

A new asymmetrically substituted ONOO Schiff base ligand N-(2′-hydroxy-1′-naphthylidene)-3-amino-2-naphthoic acid (nancH2) was prepared from the condensation of 2–hydroxy–1–naphthaldehyde and 3–amino–2–naphthoic acid. nancH2 reacts with Cu2(O2CMe)4·2H2O in the presence of Gd(O2CMe)3·6H2O to afford a uniform one-dimensional homometallic chain, [CuII(nanc)]n (1). The structure of 1 was elucidated via single crystal X-ray diffraction studies, which revealed that the Cu(II) ions adopt distorted square planar geometries and are coordinated in a tridentate manner by an [ONO] donor set from one nanc2− ligand and …


Prescribing The Q¯ ′ -Curvature On Pseudo-Einstein Cr 3-Manifolds, Ali Maalaoui Mar 2023

Prescribing The Q¯ ′ -Curvature On Pseudo-Einstein Cr 3-Manifolds, Ali Maalaoui

Mathematics

In this paper we study the problem of prescribing the Q ¯ ′ -curvature on embeddable pseudo-Einstein CR 3-manifolds. In the first stage we study the problem in the compact setting and we show that under natural assumptions, one can prescribe any positive (resp. negative) CR pluriharmonic function, if ∫ M Q ′ d v θ > 0 (resp. ∫ M Q ′ d v θ < 0 ). In the second stage, we study the problem in the non-compact setting of the Heisenberg group. Under mild assumptions on the prescribed function, we prove existence of a one parameter family of solutions. In fact, we show that one can find two kinds of solutions: normal ones that satisfy an isoperimetric inequality and non-normal ones that have a biharmonic leading term.

The available download on this page is the author manuscript accepted for publication. This version has undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading …


Superconductivity And Fermi Surface Studies Of Β″-(Bedt-Ttf)2[(H2o)(Nh4)2cr(C2o4)3]·18-Crown-6, Brett Laramee, Raju Ghimire, David Graf, Lee Martin, Toby J. Blundell, Charles Agosta Mar 2023

Superconductivity And Fermi Surface Studies Of Β″-(Bedt-Ttf)2[(H2o)(Nh4)2cr(C2o4)3]·18-Crown-6, Brett Laramee, Raju Ghimire, David Graf, Lee Martin, Toby J. Blundell, Charles Agosta

Physics

We report rf-penetration depth measurements of the quasi-2D organic superconductor (Formula presented.) -(BEDT-TTF) (Formula presented.) [(H (Formula presented.) O)(NH (Formula presented.)) (Formula presented.) Cr(C (Formula presented.) O (Formula presented.)) (Formula presented.)]·18-crown-6, which has the largest separation between consecutive conduction layers of any 2D organic metal with a single packing motif. Using a contactless tunnel diode oscillator measurement technique, we show the zero-field cooling dependence and field sweeps up to 28 T oriented at various angles with respect to the crystal conduction planes. When oriented parallel to the layers, the upper critical field, (Formula presented.) T, which is the calculated paramagnetic …


Satellite Ligand Effects On Magnetic Exchange In Dimers. A Structural, Magnetic And Theoretical Investigation Of Cu2l2x4 (L = Methylisothiazolinone And X = Cl−, Br−), Stefan Coetzee, Mark M. Turnbull, Christopher Landee, Jeffrey C. Monroe, Mercè Deumal, Juan J. Novoa, Melanie Rademeyer Feb 2023

Satellite Ligand Effects On Magnetic Exchange In Dimers. A Structural, Magnetic And Theoretical Investigation Of Cu2l2x4 (L = Methylisothiazolinone And X = Cl−, Br−), Stefan Coetzee, Mark M. Turnbull, Christopher Landee, Jeffrey C. Monroe, Mercè Deumal, Juan J. Novoa, Melanie Rademeyer

Chemistry

Halide-bridged polymers have gained significant interest due to their diverse properties and potential applications. Stacked Cu2L2X4 dimers, where L is an organic ligand and X can be Cl or Br, are of interest because a chloride analogue where L = 2-pyridone, had previously been reported to exhibit bulk ferromagnetism, which augured great potentiality for this class of compounds. The synthesis, structural characterization, magnetic susceptibility measurements, and computational studies of two isostructural CuClMI (MI = methylisothiazolinone) and CuBrMI polymers of Cu(ii), along with a related CuClPYR (PYR = 2-pyridone) is reported. CuClMI and …


Field-Tunable Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless Correlations In A Heisenberg Magnet, D. Opherden, M.S.J. Tepaske, F. Bärtl, M. Weber, M.M Turnbull, T. Lancaster, S.J. Blundell, M. Baenitz, J. Wosnitza, C.P. Landee, R. Moessner, D.J. Luitz Feb 2023

Field-Tunable Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless Correlations In A Heisenberg Magnet, D. Opherden, M.S.J. Tepaske, F. Bärtl, M. Weber, M.M Turnbull, T. Lancaster, S.J. Blundell, M. Baenitz, J. Wosnitza, C.P. Landee, R. Moessner, D.J. Luitz

Chemistry

We report the manifestation of field-induced Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) correlations in the weakly coupled spin-1/2 Heisenberg layers of the molecular-based bulk material [Cu(pz)2(2-HOpy)2](PF6)2. At zero field, a transition to long-range order occurs at 1.38 K, caused by a weak intrinsic easy-plane anisotropy and an interlayer exchange of J′/kB≈1 mK. Because of the moderate intralayer exchange coupling of J/kB=6.8 K, the application of laboratory magnetic fields induces a substantial XY anisotropy of the spin correlations. Crucially, this provides a significant BKT regime, as the tiny interlayer exchange J′ only induces 3D correlations upon close approach to the BKT transition with its exponential …


Exact Parallel Waves In General Relativity, Cian Roche, Amir Babak Aazami, Carla Cederbaum Feb 2023

Exact Parallel Waves In General Relativity, Cian Roche, Amir Babak Aazami, Carla Cederbaum

Mathematics

We conduct a review of the basic definitions and the principal results in the study of wavelike spacetimes, that is spacetimes whose metric models massless radiation moving at the speed of light, focusing in particular on those geometries with parallel rays. In particular, we motivate and connect their various definitions, outline their coordinate descriptions and present some classical results in their study in a language more accessible to modern readers, including the existence of “null coordinates” and the construction of Penrose limits. We also present a thorough summary of recent work on causality in pp-waves, and describe progress in addressing …


Organic–Inorganic Manganese (Ii) Halide Hybrid Combining The Two Isomers Cis/Trans Of [Mncl4(H2o)2]: Crystal Structure, Physical Properties, Pharmacokinetics And Biological Evaluation, Mansoura Bourwina, Sandra Walha, Najeh Krayem, Riadh Badraoui, Faten Brahmi, Mark M. Turnbull, Wejdan M. Alshammari, Mejdi Snoussi, Thierry Roisnel, Houcine Naïli Feb 2023

Organic–Inorganic Manganese (Ii) Halide Hybrid Combining The Two Isomers Cis/Trans Of [Mncl4(H2o)2]: Crystal Structure, Physical Properties, Pharmacokinetics And Biological Evaluation, Mansoura Bourwina, Sandra Walha, Najeh Krayem, Riadh Badraoui, Faten Brahmi, Mark M. Turnbull, Wejdan M. Alshammari, Mejdi Snoussi, Thierry Roisnel, Houcine Naïli

Chemistry

A manganese (II) complex templated by hexahydro-1,4-diazepinediium as a counter ion was grown by slow evaporation from an aqueous solution at room temperature. The X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the compound (C5H14N2)[MnCl4(H2O)2] crystallizes in the centrosymmetric space group P2/c of the monoclinic system. The crystal structure of the Mn(II) complex is characterized by an alternation of 0-dimensional organic and inorganic stacks linked together by N/O-H…Cl and N-H…O hydrogen bonds, which lead to a three-dimensional supramolecular architecture. In this structure, the inorganic layer is built up by independent anionic …


Function Spaces Via Fractional Poisson Kernel On Carnot Groups And Applications, Ali Maalaoui, Andrea Pinamonti, Gareth Speight Jan 2023

Function Spaces Via Fractional Poisson Kernel On Carnot Groups And Applications, Ali Maalaoui, Andrea Pinamonti, Gareth Speight

Mathematics

We provide a new characterization of homogeneous Besov and Sobolev spaces in Carnot groups using the fractional heat kernel and Poisson kernel. We apply our results to study commutators involving fractional powers of the sub-Laplacian. © 2022, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.


Growing Up Sustainable? Politics Of Race And Youth In Urbanplan, Copenhagen, Max Ritts, Rebecca Rutt Jan 2023

Growing Up Sustainable? Politics Of Race And Youth In Urbanplan, Copenhagen, Max Ritts, Rebecca Rutt

Geography

This paper considers how racialized youth in Denmark negotiate sustainability amid contexts marked by intersecting forms of economic restructuring, progressive neoliberalism, white ethno-nationalism, and green urban planning. Urbanplan is a low-income, notoriously “troubled” Copenhagen neighborhood where we conducted fieldwork for 7 months (2019-2020) with fifteen male youth, aged 17-21. Using ethnography, policy reviews, and interviews with city social workers, we explore how intimate experiences of nature, group-identity, and place attachment here relate to and depart from the structural forces actively reshaping the neighborhood. Our analysis combines Cindi Katz's intersectional political economy approach with recent work on green gentrification, Critical Utopian …


Long-Term Stability Of Ferri-/Ferrocyanide As An Electroactive Component For Redox Flow Battery Applications: On The Origin Of Apparent Capacity Fade, Eric M. Fell, Diana De Porcellinis, Yan Jing, Valeria Gutierrez-Venegas, Thomas Y. George, Roy G. Gordon, Sergio Granados-Focil, Michael Aziz Jan 2023

Long-Term Stability Of Ferri-/Ferrocyanide As An Electroactive Component For Redox Flow Battery Applications: On The Origin Of Apparent Capacity Fade, Eric M. Fell, Diana De Porcellinis, Yan Jing, Valeria Gutierrez-Venegas, Thomas Y. George, Roy G. Gordon, Sergio Granados-Focil, Michael Aziz

Chemistry

We assess the suitability of potassium ferri-/ferrocyanide as an electroactive species for long-term utilization in aqueous organic redox flow batteries. A series of electrochemical and chemical characterization experiments was performed to distinguish between structural decomposition and apparent capacity fade of ferri-/ferrocyanide solutions used in the capacity-limiting side of a flow battery. Our results indicate that, in contrast with previous reports, no structural decomposition of ferri-/ferrocyanide occurs at tested pH values as high as 14 in the dark or in diffuse indoor light. Instead, an apparent capacity fade takes place due to a chemical reduction of ferricyanide to ferrocyanide, via chemical …


Escape Dynamics Of Confined Undulating Worms, Animesh Biswas, Arshad Kudrolli Jan 2023

Escape Dynamics Of Confined Undulating Worms, Animesh Biswas, Arshad Kudrolli

Physics

We investigate the escape dynamics of oligochaeta Lumbriculus variegatus by confining them to a quasi-2D circular chamber with a narrow exit passage. The worms move by performing undulatory and peristaltic strokes and use their head to actively probe their surroundings. We show that the worms follow the chamber boundary with occasional reversals in direction and with velocities determined by the orientation angle of the body with respect to the boundary. The average time needed to reach the passage decreases with its width before approaching a constant, consistent with a boundary-following search strategy. We model the search dynamics as a persistent …


Dissolution-Driven Propulsion Of Floating Solids, Martin Chaigne, Michael Berhanu, Arshad Kudrolli Jan 2023

Dissolution-Driven Propulsion Of Floating Solids, Martin Chaigne, Michael Berhanu, Arshad Kudrolli

Physics

We show that unconstrained asymmetric dissolving solids floating in a fluid can move rectilinearly as a result of attached density currents which occur along their inclined surfaces. Solids in the form of boats composed of centimeter-scale sugar and salt slabs attached to a buoy are observed to move rapidly in water with speeds up to 5 mm/s determined by the inclination angle and orientation of the dissolving surfaces. While symmetric boats drift slowly, asymmetric boats are observed to accelerate rapidly along a line before reaching a terminal velocity when their drag matches the thrust generated by dissolution. By visualizing the …