The physical principles of swimming and flying in animals are intriguingly different from those of ships and airplanes. The study of animal locomotion therefore holds a special place not only at the frontiers of pure fluid dynamics research, but also in the applied field of biomimetics, which aims to emulate salient aspects of the performance and function of living organisms. For example, fluid dynamic loads are so significant for swimming fish that they are expected to have developed efficient flow control procedures through the evolutionary process of adaptation by natural selection, which might in turn be applied to the design of robotic swimmers. And yet, sharply contrasting views as to the energetic efficiency of oscillatory propulsion - especially for marine animals - demand a careful assessment of the forces and energy expended at realistic Reynolds numbers. For this and many other research questions, an experimental approach is often the most appropriate methodology. This holds as much for flying animals as it does for swimming ones, and similar experimental challenges apply - studying tethered as opposed to free locomotion, or studying the flow around robotic models as opposed to real animals. This book provides a wide-ranging snapshot of the state-of-the-art in experimental research on the physics of swimming and flying animals. The resulting picture reflects not only upon the questions that are of interest in current pure and applied research, but also upon the experimental techniques that are available to answer them.

This book narrates the development of various biomimetic microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors, such as pressure, flow, acceleration, chemical, and tactile sensors, that are inspired by sensing phenomena that exist in marine life. The research described in this book is multi-faceted and combines the expertise and understanding from diverse fields, including biomimetics, microfabrication, sensor engineering, MEMS design, nanotechnology, and material science. A series of chapters examine the design and fabrication of MEMS sensors that function on piezoresistive, piezoelectric, strain gauge, and chemical sensing principles. By translating nature-based engineering solutions to artificial man-made technology, we can find innovative solutions to critical problems.

This book explores the fabrication of soft material and biomimetic MEMS sensors, presents a review of MEMS/NEMS energy harvesters and self-powered sensors, and focuses on the recent efforts in developing flexible and wearable piezoelectric nanogenerators. It also includes a critical analysis of various energy harvesting principles, such as electromagnetic, piezoelectric, electrostatic, triboelectric, and magnetostrictive. This multidisciplinary book is appropriate for students and professionals in the fields of material science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and bioengineering.