Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Automated Analysis of C. elegans Swim Behavior Using CeleST Software
Published on: December 7, 2016
Dynamics and stability of Purcell's three-link microswimmer near a wall
1Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel. izi@tx.technion.ac.il
Abstract:
The motion of swimming microorganisms is strongly influenced by the presence of boundaries. Attraction of bacteria and sperm cells to surfaces is a well-known phenomenon which has been observed in experiments and confirmed by numerical simulations. This effect is studied in this work from a viewpoint of dynamical systems theory by analyzing a swimmer model which is a variant of the classical Purcell's three-link swimmer near an infinite plane wall. The underlying geometric structure of the swimmer's dynamics and its relation to stability are elucidated. It is found that a swimmer which breaks its fore-aft symmetry has a preferred swimming direction in which its motion is passively stable and converges to a fixed separation distance from the wall.
Related Concept Videos
Buoyancy and Stability for Submerged and Floating Bodies
Stability of Equilibrium Configuration: Problem Solving
Problem-solving in the context of the stability of equilibrium configuration...
Newton's Third Law: Examples
Stability of Equilibrium Configuration
A stable equilibrium occurs when a system tends to return to its original position when given a small displacement, and the potential energy is at its minimum. An example of a stable equilibrium is when a cantilever beam is fixed at one end and a weight is attached to the other end. If the weight...
Stability of structures
Pole and System Stability
Simple poles are unique roots of the denominator polynomial. Each simple pole corresponds to a distinct solution to the system's characteristic equation, typically resulting in exponential decay terms in the system's response.

