Manipulating microalgae with magnetic fields
The demo is organised by the Active Matter research group from the School of Science
We demonstrate how we can manipulate non-magnetic microalgae with magnetic fields when we disperse them in a biocompatible magnetic medium.
The strain of Microalgae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii that we work with, is a single cell microorganism that swims in a breaststroke fashion using its two flagella. The algae cells have photoreceptors that help them detect light and move towards light in certain conditions. They also have a shape asymmetry that directs their movement. In addition, the algae cells can be guided by a magnetic field when the cells are in a magnetic medium. We demonstrate how these characteristics lead to pattern formation and what we are trying to learn from it.
Presenter: Fereshteh Sohrabi and Sofia Böling
Research group: Active Matter
Department: Applied physics