Research
The smallest flying insects are of significant agricultural and ecological importance. For example, thrips are an agricultural pest, parasitoid wasps can be used for biological control of pests, and other tiny insects can transmit pollen and plant pathogens.
Because of their small size, we know that viscosity plays a much larger role in the aerodynamics of the smallest flying insects than it does for larger insects, however details of how these insects fly still remains a mystery. To fully appreciate the challenge faced by these insects, consider the following analogy: a tiny insect flying through the air would be similar to a human trying to swim through thick syrup—no easy feat!
The main focus of my doctoral work is to understand the challenges of flight at the scale of the smallest flying insects and to investigate possible mechanisms to overcome these challenges. Understanding the aerodynamics of flapping flight at this small scale may lead to improved dispersal strategies for biological control. Additionally, further insight into the aerodynamical limits of flight of tiny insects will be beneficial to engineers developing biologically-inspired micro-aerial vehicles
A three-dimensional immersed boundary simulation of two flexible insect wings performing "clap and fling".
Published Papers
SK Jones, YJJ Young, TL Hedrick, BG Griffith, LA Miller. Journal of Experimental Biology. 219 (2016) 3759-3772. doi: 10.1242/jeb.143362
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*Featured in an article for "Inside JEB". Link
SK Jones, R Laurenza, TL Hedrick, BG Griffith, LA Miller. Journal of Theoretical Biology. 384 (2015) 105–120.
A Santhanakrishnan, AK Robinson, S Jones, M Dollinger, AA Low, S Gadi, TL Hedrick and LA Miller. The Journal of experimental biology 217.21 (2014): 3898-3909.
LA Miller, A Santhanakrishnan, S Jones, C Hamlet, K Mertens, and L Zhu. The Journal of experimental biology 215.15 (2012): 2716-2727.
JL Perry, P Guo, SK Johnson, H Mukaibo, JD Stewart, CR Martin. Nanomedicine 5.8 (2010): 1151-1160.
Submitted and In Preparation
Flow structure and force generation on flapping wings at low Reynolds numbers relevant to tiny insect flight
A Santhanakrishnan*, SK Jones*, WB Dickson, M Peek, MH Dickinson, LA Miller. (in preparation, to be submitted to Journal of Fluids and Structures) *denotes co-first authors
Three-dimensional flows through arrays of cylinders with applications to the endothelial surface layer
LA Miller, A Santhanakrishnan, R Ortiz, A Keng, JG Cox, K Leiderman, C Hamlet, S Jones, L Fovargue, D Fovargue, J Prins, and M Minion. (submitted to Bulletin of Mathematical Biology)