Dates
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Location
Brest, Pôle Numérique Brest Bouguen

Micro-swimming, or swimming on a microscopic scale, is now a rapidly expanding field of research at the interface of mathematics, physics, biology, and engineering sciences. This conference aims to highlight recent contributions from applied mathematics to the understanding and modeling of the locomotion mechanisms of microorganisms in highly viscous environments, where the laws of mechanics differ radically from those that govern our own swimming on a macroscopic scale.

Propulsion on a microscopic scale cannot be understood without paying particular attention to the laws of fluid mechanics at low Reynolds numbers. From bacteria with rotating flagella (such as E. coli) to spermatozoa using undulatory movements, to microalgae capable of large deformations of their entire bodies, nature offers a remarkable diversity of movement strategies. Understanding these mechanisms through rigorous mathematical models and detailed numerical simulations not only sheds light on certain fundamental biological phenomena, but also paves the way for innovative applications, particularly in medicine, with the design of micro-swimming robots for non-invasive procedures.

This conference will provide an overview of the mathematical issues raised by microswimming - optimal control, fluid-structure interaction, geometric modeling, dynamics of active systems - and will highlight the challenges facing mathematicians in an inherently multidisciplinary field, where rigorous modeling meets the inventiveness of concrete applications. It will bring together master's students, doctoral students, post-doctoral researchers, researchers, teacher-researchers, and professionals from several fields: biology, mechanics, modeling, and mathematical analysis.

Organizing committee

Scientific committee