ICS-2 Seminar: Particle Transport and Flow Field analysis of beating Cilia
- 24.10.2013 14:00 Uhr
- Seminarraum 2001, Geb. 04.16
Cilia, microscopic hair-like organelles, are found on the surface of many eukaryotic cells. The flow they generate is a critical component of every living organism, as it has a key function in the transportation of particles. From a physical point of view, the generated flow can have two effects: First, it can induce cooperative effects. In an array of cilia a global directional flow is established. It can transport particles to a specific location or create a self-propelled motion of an entire microorganism, like in the case of a Paramecium.
Secondly, it can enhance the flux of particles to a specific active site near the surface of a cell. Thereby it is increasing the efficiency and range of sensors in the direct environment of the cilium.
In my talk I will present the flow fields of an array of synchronous beating cilia and bundles of cilia obtained from a series of multiple-particle collision dynamics simulations. Their efficiency in the transportation of particles to the surface are compared with each other. Two significant effects on the distribution of the transported particles are found:
Firstly, it focuses them in the xy-plane. Secondly, the minimal first passage time distribution reaches lower values at large enough Péclet numbers.
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