Directional flows using capillary assembly of photo-deformable colloidal particles at water-air interfaces

Colloidal particles at liquid interfaces experience long-ranged capillary interactions, whose magnitude and directionality depend on the particle shapes. When particle shapes are determined by fabrication or synthesis, the resulting shape-mediated interactions are predefined and often lead to the formation of persistent interfacial structures. Here, we introduce polymer particles at water-air interfaces whose shape and, therefore, interactions can be altered by illumination with polarized light. Specifically, we selectively trigger capillary self-assembly by anisotropically deforming the particles at the interface. Intriguingly, further deformation of already assembled particles induces sustained interfacial flows with velocities of up to 90 μm/s. Benefitting from polarization-defined deformation directions, we create flow-patterns that do not simply follow the illumination intensity pattern, such as shear flows along a single rectangular illumination stripe. We anticipate that this interplay between photo-deformation and capillary interactions of particles will enable various forms of mixing, manipulation, and assembly of soft matter at liquid interfaces.