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- Title
Emergent microrobotic oscillators via asymmetry-induced order.
- Authors
Yang, Jing Fan; Berrueta, Thomas A.; Brooks, Allan M.; Liu, Albert Tianxiang; Zhang, Ge; Gonzalez-Medrano, David; Yang, Sungyun; Koman, Volodymyr B.; Chvykov, Pavel; LeMar, Lexy N.; Miskin, Marc Z.; Murphey, Todd D.; Strano, Michael S.
- Abstract
Spontaneous oscillations on the order of several hertz are the drivers of many crucial processes in nature. From bacterial swimming to mammal gaits, converting static energy inputs into slowly oscillating power is key to the autonomy of organisms across scales. However, the fabrication of slow micrometre-scale oscillators remains a major roadblock towards fully-autonomous microrobots. Here, we study a low-frequency oscillator that emerges from a collective of active microparticles at the air-liquid interface of a hydrogen peroxide drop. Their interactions transduce ambient chemical energy into periodic mechanical motion and on-board electrical currents. Surprisingly, these oscillations persist at larger ensemble sizes only when a particle with modified reactivity is added to intentionally break permutation symmetry. We explain such emergent order through the discovery of a thermodynamic mechanism for asymmetry-induced order. The on-board power harvested from the stabilised oscillations enables the use of electronic components, which we demonstrate by cyclically and synchronously driving a microrobotic arm. This work highlights a new strategy for achieving low-frequency oscillations at the microscale, paving the way for future microrobotic autonomy. Spontaneous low-frequency oscillations, which are a feature of biological systems, are challenging to engineer into microrobotic systems. The authors discover a mechanism for asymmetry-induced order and realise electrical and mechanical oscillations in a particle collective to power a microrobotic arm.
- Subjects
MECHANICAL oscillations; PERIODIC motion; ENERGY harvesting; ELECTRONIC equipment; CHEMICAL energy
- Publication
Nature Communications, 2022, Vol 13, Issue 1, p1
- ISSN
2041-1723
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1038/s41467-022-33396-5