Thermally Driven Elastic Micromachines

Abstract

We discuss the directional motion of an elastic three-sphere micromachine in which the spheres are in equilibrium with independent heat baths having different temperatures. Even in the absence of prescribed motion of springs, such a micromachine can gain net motion purely because of thermal fluctuations. A relation connecting the average velocity and the temperatures of the spheres is analytically obtained. This velocity can also be expressed in terms of the average heat flows in the steady state. Our model suggests a new mechanism for the locomotion of micromachines in nonequilibrium biological systems.

5 pages, 2 figures

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Cited by in corpus (10)

• State diagram of a three-sphere microswimmer in a channel
• Time-correlation functions for odd Langevin systems
• Correlations in multithermostat Brownian systems with Lorentz force
• Non-equilibrium probability flux of a thermally driven micromachine
• Odd Microswimmer
• Reciprocal microswimmers in a viscoelastic fluid
• Generalized Three-Sphere Microswimmers
• Hydrodynamic interaction between two elastic microswimmers
• Irreversibility and entropy production of a thermally driven micromachine
• Autonomous elastic microswimmer