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Magnetic manipulation of self-assembled colloidal asters

Nature Materials volume 10, pages 698–703 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

Self-assembled materials1,2,3,4 must actively consume energy and remain out of equilibrium to support structural complexity and functional diversity1,5. Here we show that a magnetic colloidal suspension confined at the interface between two immiscible liquids and energized by an alternating magnetic field dynamically self-assembles into localized asters and arrays of asters, which exhibit locomotion and shape change. By controlling a small external magnetic field applied parallel to the interface, we show that asters can capture, transport, and position target microparticles. The ability to manipulate colloidal structures is crucial for the further development of self-assembled microrobots.

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Figure 1: Self-assembled dynamic asters.
Figure 2: Structure and hydrodynamic signature of asters.
Figure 3: Magnetic ordering of asters.
Figure 4: Controlled locomotion and gripper functionality of asters.
Figure 5: Collection, encaging, and transport of particles by a cluster of asters.

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Acknowledgements

We thank S. Swaminathan for careful reading of the manuscript and useful comments. The research was supported by the US DOE, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Materials Science and Engineering, under the Contract No. DE AC02-06CH11357.

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  1. Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 South Cass Avenue, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA

    Alexey Snezhko & Igor S. Aranson

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  1. Alexey Snezhko
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  2. Igor S. Aranson
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Contributions

A.S. and I.S.A. designed and carried out the experiments. A.S. analysed experimental data. Both authors wrote the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Alexey Snezhko.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Snezhko, A., Aranson, I. Magnetic manipulation of self-assembled colloidal asters. Nature Mater 10, 698–703 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat3083

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