https://doi.org/10.1140/epje/s10189-021-00033-w
Regular Article - Soft Matter
Active colloids under geometrical constraints in viscoelastic media
1
Fachbereich Physik, Universität Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
2
School of Physics and Telecommunication Engineering, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
3
School of Photoelectric Engineering, Guangdong Polytechnic Normal University, 510665, Guangzhou, China
c
clemens.bechinger@uni-konstanz.de
Received:
16
October
2020
Accepted:
29
January
2021
Published online:
11
March
2021
We study the behavior of active particles (APs) moving in a viscoelastic fluid in the presence of geometrical confinements. Upon approaching a flat wall, we find that APs slow down due to compression of the enclosed viscoelastic fluid. In addition, they receive a viscoelastic torque leading to sudden orientational changes and departure from walls. Based on these observations, we develop a numerical model which can also be applied to other geometries and yields good agreement with experimental data. Our results demonstrate, that APs are able to move through complex geometrical structures more effectively when suspended in a viscoelastic compared to a Newtonian fluid.
© The Author(s) 2021
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