No abstract

Acoustic metamaterials (AMMs) and phononic crystals (PCs) have garnered significant attention in recent years, as part of the collective driving force toward creating intelligent acoustic devices. Advancements in these fields have greatly enhanced the way we manipulate sound waves through transmission, reflection, refraction, absorption, diffraction, or attenuation. In the past decade, AMMs and PCs have enabled novel applications such as acoustic lensing, [1-3] cloaking, [4] levitation, [5] and holography. [6-8] While these exotic structures have been well explored through theoretical and numerical analysis, [9-13] their physical realization is an important topic that is rarely discussed. Considering the ubiquity of sound and the powerful capabilities of AMMs and PCs, the impact of these acoustic structures could be phenomenal. Across the full acoustic frequency spectrum, practical applications such as noise cancellation, [14] underwater detection, [15] medical imaging, [16] and energy harvesting [17,18] could benefit key sectors in our society like healthcare, well-being, environmental sustainability, and security. Moreover, AMMs and PCs can help to usher in next-generation technologies for personalized, immersive multisensory [19-22] experiences. The manipulation of sound can enrich the way we communicate and interact with our surroundings, not simply through audio, but also through tactile sensations. In the future, AMMs and PCs could be used in virtual reality (VR) setups, [23] compact wearable devices, and dynamic midair volumetric displays [24] that are controllable and capable of providing haptic feedback. [25] Beyond the notion that AMMs and PCs can replace phased arrays, they could readily complement one another for more precise control. In commercial devices, AMM and PC functionalities could even be combined together in different ways, e.g., transmissive and sound absorptive structures, for improved performance. To unlock the full potential of AMMs and PCs, it is therefore vital to ensure that practical, physical realization is pursued alongside theoretical investigation in the development of viable acoustic designs. Building an AMM or PC requires some form of fabrication or assembly or both. Fabrication refers to the technologies and processes used to manufacture an object, whereas assembly refers to the strategic amalgamation of parts for a constructive purpose.

Manipulating droplets of biological fluids in an electrowetting on dielectric (EWOD)-based digital microfluidic platform is a significant challenge because of biofouling and surface contamination. This problem is often addressed by operating in an oil environment. We study an alternate configuration of sessile compound droplets having an aqueous core surrounded by a smaller oil shell. In contrast to the conventional EWOD platform, an open digital microfluidic platform enabled by the core-shell configuration will allow electrical, mechanical, or optical probes to get unrestricted access to the droplet, thus enabling highly flexible and dynamically reconfigurable lab-on-chip systems. Understanding droplet oscillations is essential as they are known to enhance mixing. To our knowledge, this is the first study of axisymmetric and nonaxisymmetric oscillations of compound droplets actuated using EWOD platforms. Mode shapes for both axisymmetric and nonaxisymmetric oscillations were studied and explained. Enhancement in the axisymmetric oscillation of the core by decreasing the shell volume was obtained experimentally and modeled theoretically. Smaller shell volumes reduce the damping losses, allowing the appearance of nonaxisymmetric modes over a larger range of operating parameters. The oscillation frequency regime for obtaining prominent nonaxisymmetric oscillations for different shell volumes was identified. Compound droplets provide a mechanism to reduce biofouling, sample contamination, and evaporation. We demonstrate axisymmetric and nonaxisymmetric oscillations of compound droplets with the biological core of red blood cells, providing crucial first steps for promoting applications such as rapid efficient assays, mixing of biological fluids, and fluidic photonics on hysteresis-free surfaces.

No abstract

Liquid metals, including eutectic gallium–indium (EGaIn), have been explored for various planar droplet operations, including droplet splitting and merging, promoting their use in emerging areas such as flexible electronics and soft robotics. However, three-dimensional (3D) droplet operations, including droplet bouncing, have mostly been limited to nonmetallic liquids or aqueous solutions. This is the first study of liquid metal droplet bouncing using continuous AC electrowetting through an analytical model, computational fluid dynamics simulation, and empirical validation to the best of our knowledge. We achieved liquid metal droplet bouncing with a height greater than 5 mm with an actuation voltage of less than 10 V and a frequency of less than 5 Hz. We compared the bouncing trajectories of the liquid metal droplet for different actuation parameters. We found that the jumping height of the droplet increases as the frequency of the applied AC voltage decreases and its amplitude increases until the onset of instability. Furthermore, we model the attenuation dynamics of consecutive bouncing cycles of the underdamped droplet bouncing system. This study embarks on controlling liquid metal droplet bouncing electrically, thereby opening a plethora of new opportunities utilizing 3D liquid metal droplet operations for numerous applications such as energy harvesting, heat transfer, and radio frequency (RF) switching.