Swimming against a Superfluid Flow: Self-Propulsion via Vortex-Antivortex Shedding in a Quantum Fluid of Light
Phys. Rev. Lett. 136, 223401 – Published 3 June, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/ndj1-1j89
Abstract
A superfluid flows without friction below a critical velocity, exhibiting zero drag force on impurities. Above this threshold, superfluidity breaks down, and the internal energy is redistributed into incoherent excitations such as vortices. We demonstrate that a mobile, finite-mass impurity immersed in a flowing two-dimensional paraxial superfluid of light can swim against the superfluid current when the critical velocity is exceeded. This self-propulsion is achieved by the periodic emission of vortex-antivortex pairs downstream, which impart an upstream recoil momentum that results in a net propulsive force. Analogous to biological systems that minimize effort by exploiting wake turbulence, the impurity harnesses this vortex backreaction as a passive mechanism of locomotion. Based on a simple theoretical model, we quantitatively describe how this mechanism depends on the impurity geometry and the surrounding flow velocity. Our findings establish a fundamental link between internal-energy dissipation in quantum fluids and concepts of self-propulsion in active-matter systems and open new possibilities for exploiting quantum vortices for controlled transport at the microscale.
