3D-printed machines that manipulate microscopic objects using capillary forces

• Published in: Nature (London) Vol. 611; no. 7934; pp. 68 - 73
• Main Authors: Zeng, Cheng, Faaborg, Maya Winters, Sherif, Ahmed, Falk, Martin J., Hajian, Rozhin, Xiao, Ming, Hartig, Kara, Bar-Sinai, Yohai, Brenner, Michael P., Manoharan, Vinothan N.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 03.11.2022; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 639/301/1005/190; 639/301/357/1016; 639/301/923/614; 639/766/189; Braiding; Contact angle; Filaments; Humanities and Social Sciences; Micromanipulation; multidisciplinary; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Symmetry; Three dimensional printing; Topology; Vertical motion; Water baths

Objects that deform a liquid interface are subject to capillary forces, which can be harnessed to assemble the objects 1 – 4 . Once assembled, such structures are generally static. Here we dynamically modulate these forces to move objects in programmable two-dimensional patterns. We 3D-print devices...