We present a numerical analysis of the lateral movement of a deformable spherical capsule in a pulsatile channel flow, with a Newtonian fluid in an almost inertialess condition and at a small confinement ratio $a_0/R=0.4$, where $R$ and $a$ are the channel and capsule radius. We find that the speed of the axial migration of the capsule can be accelerated by the flow pulsation at a specific frequency. The migration speed increases with the oscillatory amplitude, while the most effective frequency remains basically unchanged and independent of the amplitude. Our numerical results form a fundamental basis for further studies on cellular flow mechanics, since pulsatile flows are physiologically relevant in human circulation, potentially affecting the dynamics of deformable particles and red blood cells, and can also be potentially exploited in cell focusing techniques.

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• Applications of soft matter
• Cell migration
• Elastic deformation
• Multiphase flows