The Magnetic DeeJay

Mix Master Magnets

A rotating magnetic field can induce tiny beads in a fluid to link up into spinning strings, researchers report in the July Physical Review E. The team measured the effects of different field configurations to find the most efficient way to use the beads to stir the fluid. These “self-assembled stir bars” could mix even the hard-to-stir fluids in micron-sized channels within miniaturized chemical analysis chips that are in development.