Plavanje pri majhnih Reynoldsovih številih

Plavalni mehanizmi mikroorganizmov se precej razlikujejo od človeških in živalskih. V režimu majhnih Reynoldsovih števil veljajo drugačni fizikalni zakoni. Mikroorganizmi so zato razvili posebne oblike premikanja, ki zadoščajo ,,scallop’’ teoremu. Ta pravi, da mora njihovo gibanje biti nesimetrično na obrat časa. Poleg tega potrebujejo za premikanje potisno silo, ki jo ustvarijo z načinom premikanja bička skozi tekočino. V članku so predstavljene različne strategije iskanja hranil in utemeljitev, zakaj je plavanje mikroorganizma najboljša iskalna izbira.

Swimming at low Reynolds number

The swimming mechanisms of microorganisms are quite different from those of humans and animals. In the regime of a small Reynolds number, different physical laws apply. Microorganisms have therefore developed special forms of movement that satisfy ,,scallop’’ theorem. It says that their movements must be non-symmetrical under time reversals. In order to swim, they need a thrust force, which is created by the way appendages move through the liquid. The paper presents different nutrient search strategies and the rationale why swimming is the best search strategy for microorganisms.