After mixing oil droplets with water and detergent, scientists from several European countries, including Poland, created floating microrobots that extract energy from temperature differences.
“First of all, we propose a system that is very simple to produce and control, which has many features of natural microorganisms, i.e. droplets capable of moving without external forces. Microscopic floaters (such as bacteria, sperm, ciliates, etc.) are very complicated because their movement is the result of biochemical processes inside cells that are difficult to control. Therefore, a thorough understanding of the physical mechanisms governing their movement is a challenge – it is not easy to “filter” this biological complexity “- says Dr. Maciej Lisicki from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw, co-inventor of the invention.
At the same time, microrobots can be made with the help of the cheapest laboratory equipment, and even at home. Therefore, minimal financial outlays are sufficient for their research.
Fat-water formations are non-toxic to living organisms.