Abstract
Measurements of the shear viscosity in suspensions of swimming Bacillus subtilis in free-standing liquid films have revealed that the viscosity can decrease by up to a factor of 7 compared to the viscosity of the same liquid without bacteria or with nonmotile bacteria. The reduction in viscosity is observed in two complementary experiments: one studying the decay of a large vortex induced by a moving probe and another measuring the viscous torque on a rotating magnetic particle immersed in the film. The viscosity depends on the concentration and swimming speed of the bacteria.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 148101 |
| Journal | Physical Review Letters |
| Volume | 103 |
| Issue number | 14 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Sep 29 2009 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- General Physics and Astronomy