Datta Lab

Lab of Sujit Datta @Caltech studying transport of soft (“squishy”) and living systems to address challenges in biotech, energy, medicine, & sustainability.

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

The views and opinions expressed in this account are solely those of the members of the Datta Lab and do not necessarily reflect the position of our funding agencies or Princeton University.

(Following, RT, and Likes ≠ endorsement)

[American Physical Society @APSphysics]

We’re bringing all of our research updates together in one place. Follow @apsjournals for the full portfolio of research and publishing news.

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

It was a pleasure to work on this project with Simon Haward & @ShenU_OIST.
As always, we'd love to hear your feedback. Please RT/share with whoever might be interested! [7/7]

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

Excited to release our latest work, led by PhD alumnus of the group Emily Chen: https://t.co/mAWd12j29r!

We provide a mechanistic explanation for why polymer solutions anomalously "flow thicken" in porous media—but not in bulk. 🧽💧

Tweetorial follows... [1/6]

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

The missing piece of physics was polymer extension at stagnation points in the pore space. As fluid squeezes past each obstacle, polymers stretch, which costs energy and adds to the macroscopic pressure drop. Emily direct linked this pore-scale physics to macroscopic flow. [5/6]

[Bio-Inspired Soft Matter Lab @KandulaLab]

Undergraduate Soft Matter Summer School 2026 at UMass Amherst in June!
Open to undergraduate physics students interested in soft matter research. To know more: https://t.co/erUr6rXLJ4
@ApsDsoft @UMassAmherst #SoftMatter #UndergraduateResearch #Physics

[The Society of Rheology @SoRheology]

Reminder: Submit your abstract to the Society of Rheology's annual meeting! This year's meeting will be held in Boston, MA October 25-29.

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

Thrilled to see this paper published @JFluidMech!
Check it out at https://t.co/jDCXkixbmP.

In it, we describe how elastic flow instabilities manifest in ordered granular media — and how inter-grain contacts shape the characteristics of the unstable flow. 🌪️⌛️

Summary below ⬇️

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

Excited to release our latest work, led by Emily Chen:
https://t.co/6uYhKe5cd4!

Here, we reveal & highlight the pivotal, but previously-overlooked, role of inter-grain contacts in shaping viscoelastic flow instabilities in granular media. 💧🌪️🧽

Tweetorial follows... [1/6]

[Rockefeller University @RockefellerUniv]

This #EarthDay we're featuring Rockefeller's Avi Flamholz, who studies how microbes contribute to #climatechange and how they could offer solutions to this problem via their metabolisms.

From @TheScientistLLC:
https://t.co/Ue73wlbBJk

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

@INemenman This is exciting work! Congratulations!!!

[@APS_DSNP @aps_dsnp]

📢 We’re kicking off the first klogW seminar of the year!
Join us on April 21st at 12PM EST for a talk by Douglas Jerolmack (UPenn) — 2026 APS-DSNP Fellow — presenting "Fragility of Soft Earth Materials" 🌎🌍🌏

Registration link: https://t.co/0UqJsvnQA5

[Quanta Magazine @QuantaMagazine]

Each tubule of fungal root systems is about one-tenth the width of a human hair. New technology has allowed scientists to glimpse nutrients flowing through them for the first time. It’s revolutionizing the field.
https://t.co/Gbro2R2d32

[Mikhail Tikhonov @mikhtikh]

Officially out - very excited to share! “Emergent simplicity” in microbial ecosystems has long been an appealing idea—but meant different things to different people. As a result, the field hasn't agreed: is it real? surprising? useful? 1/3 https://t.co/nr291bDi5S

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

@mikhtikh Fascinating work! As I understand it, microbial activity collectively creates shared environmental conditions that then organize how the community functions. Kind of like a way of identifying 'thermodynamic variables' for microbial communities. So cool.

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

As always, we'd love to hear your feedback. Please RT/share with whoever might be interested! [10/10]

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

Excited to release our latest work, led by postdoc @BabakVH, along with Tom Appleford, Hao Nghi Luu, @RamaswamyMeera, and @maziyarj: https://t.co/omU65wbJhX!

We discovered that immotile microbes can escape confinement by hitching a ride on biogenic bubbles.🫧

Summary ⬇️ [1/10]

[Datta Lab @TheSquishyLab]

The implications are broad. This mechanism may be at play in microbial mats, methane ebullition in sediments, and even in fermenting dough — systems where the biophysical mechanisms underlying microbial dispersal have long been unclear. [9/10]