Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The dynamics of swimming bacteria depend on the properties of their habitat media. Recently it is shown that the motion of swimming bacteria dispersed directly in a non‐toxic water‐based lyotropic chromonic liquid crystal can be controlled by the director field of the liquid crystal. Here, we investigate whether the macroscopic polar order of a ferroelectric nematic liquid crystal (NF) can be recognized by bacteria B. Subtilis swimming in a water dispersion adjacent to a glassy NF film by surface interactions alone. Our results show that B. Subtilis tends to move in the direction antiparallel to the spontaneous electric polarization at the NF surface. Their speed is found to be the same with or without a polar NF layer. In contrast to observation on crystal ferroelectric films, the bacteria do not get immobilized. These observations may offer a pathway to creation of polar microinserts to direct bacterial motion in vivo.
Source: Small
Institution: Kent State University
Language: English
Topic: Micro and Nano Robotics
Subfield: Condensed Matter Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,510
Awards: Collaborative Research: Highly ordered concentric multilayer nanostructures with probable liquid crystalline features from rigid sphere-rod amphiphiles in solution, Electro-optical phase retarders based on newly discovered nematics, Electromechanical Effects of Ferroelectric Nematic Liquid Crystals
OpenAlex ID: W4405384566