PhD ceremony Mr. S.K. Namdeo: Flagellar hydrodynamics of biological and biomimetic micro-swimmers

PhD ceremony: Mr. S.K. Namdeo

Dissertation: Flagellar hydrodynamics of biological and biomimetic micro-swimmers

Promotor(s): prof. P.R. Onck

Faculty: Mathematics and Natural Sciences

Biomimetic designs and actuation strategies of magnetic micro-swimmers are suggested by exploiting the swimming principles of various flagellated micro-organisms. Controlled and bi-directional propulsion - through narrow channels via external stimuli - of such a micro-swimmer makes it a potential candidate for biomedical applications involving therapeutic, diagnostic, and surgical procedures.

To study the propulsive hydrodynamics of flagellated systems, finite element based computational models are developed in which the solid mechanics, fluid dynamics, and magneto-static equations are solved simultaneously. The key dimensionless parameters are identified to explore the design space for biomimetic systems and to study the propulsive hydrodynamics of natural flagella. The thesis provides fundamental physical insights on flagellar hydrodynamics of biological and biomimetic micro-swimmers.