Antoine Deblais is to present a seminar entitled: Locomotion and Particle Collection of Active Filaments in Confined Spaces

I will present two recent findings on the locomotion and particle collection of living Tubifex tubifex filamentous worms in confined environments. First, I will discuss how their movement through quasi-2D pillar arrays is influenced by obstacle arrangement and density. While ordered structures restrict motion, disordered environments enhance diffusion, revealing a counterintuitive interplay between activity and confinement. Second, I will explore the worms’ remarkable ability to collect dispersed particles, a process governed by their flexibility and activity. Inspired by these biological mechanisms, we develop robotic and simulated systems that replicate their aggregation dynamics, offering new strategies for designing particle collection systems.