Active Assembly of Spheroidal Photocatalytic BiVO₄ Microswimmers

Abstract

We create single-component photocatalytic bismuth vanadate (BiVO₄) microswimmers with a spheroidal shape that move individually upon irradiation without any asymmetrization step. These particles form active assemblies which we investigate combining an experimental approach with numerical simulations and analytical calculations. We systematically explore the speed and assembly of the swimmers into clusters of up to four particles and find excellent agreement between experiment and theory, which helps us to understand motion patterns and speed trends. Moreover, different batches of particles can be functionalized separately, making them ideal candidates to fulfill a multitude of tasks, such as sensing or environmental remediation. To exemplify this, we coat our swimmers with silica (SiO₂) and selectively couple some of their modules to fluorophores in a way which does not inhibit self-propulsion. The present work establishes spheroidal BiVO₄ microswimmers as a versatile platform to design multifunctional microswimmers.