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  • Open Access

Programmable transport of rotating particles in obstacle arrays

Marcos Puerto1, Alfredo Alexander-Katz2, Juan L. Aragones3,4,5,*, and J. V. Alvarez1,4,5,†

  • *Contact author: juan.aragones@uam.es
  • †Contact author: jv.alvarez@uam.es
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Phys. Rev. Research 8, 033071 – Published 17 July, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/c3tw-b1kw

Abstract

Rotating colloids, or spinners, in obstacle arrays exhibit frequency-set stationary orbits and currents set by the competition between an inertial, Magnus-like lift and short-range attraction. Fully resolved lattice-Boltzmann simulations reveal the hydrodynamic coupling and identify the lift mechanism, while a symmetry-based Langevin model captures the resulting balance. In periodic lattices, the superposition of scalar and vector potentials produces two robust orbital regimes: corner states, in which spinners orbit individual posts, and inner states, in which orbits couple across four neighboring obstacles. Slow frequency modulation toggles these states and produce directed, stepwise transport across the grid. This establishes a minimal hydrodynamic mechanism, controlled by a single driving parameter, for programmable guidance of active rotors in structured environments.

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Phys. Rev. Research 8, 033071– Published 17 July, 2026
  • Received 13 February 2026
  • Accepted 9 June 2026
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

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