Calculus of Variations and Geometric Measure Theory

E. Micalizio - M. Morandotti - H. Shum - M. Zoppello

Purcell swimmer near a wall

created by micalizio on 03 Feb 2026
modified by morandott on 23 May 2026

[BibTeX]

Published Paper

Inserted: 3 feb 2026
Last Updated: 23 may 2026

Journal: Meccanica
Volume: 61
Pages: article 71
Year: 2026
Doi: 10.1007/s11012-026-02136-0

Abstract:

We study the effects of hydrodynamic interactions between a wall and the Purcell three-link swimmer in the twodimensional case. After deriving the equations of motion in a low Reynolds number regime using the Resistive Force Theory, we show controllability of the system by means of criteria from Geometric Control Theory. We investigate configurations that are nearly parallel to the wall and show alignment to the wall during the motion, even when using a gait that generates a rotation-free displacement in unbounded domains. Some numerical experiments illustrate the analytical results.


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