title: Dynamic trapping and two-dimensional transport of swimming microorganisms using a rotating magnetic microrobot.
abstract: Manipulation of microorganisms with intrinsic motility is a challenging yet important task for many biological and biomedical applications. Currently, such a task has only been accomplished using optical tweezers, while at the risk of averse heating and photodamage of the biological samples. Here, we proposed a new micro-robotic approach for fluidic trapping and two-dimensional transportation of motile microorganisms near a solid surface in fluids. We demonstrated selective trapping and transportation of individual freely swimming multi-flagellated bacteria over a distance of 30 μm (7.5 body length of the carrier) on a surface, using the rotational flows locally induced by a rotating magnetic microparticle. Only a weak uniform magnetic field (<3 mT) was applied to actuate the microparticle. The microparticle can translate on a glass substrate by rotating at a speed of up to 100 μm s(-1), while providing a fluidic force of a few to tens of pico-Newtons.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213, USA. sitti@cmu.edu.
authors.forename: Zhou
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Metin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sitti
mesh_terms: D056656:Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; D060526:Magnetic Fields; D052898:Optical Tweezers; D012705:Serratia / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism*