Directed transport induced by asymmetric surface vibrations: making use of friction

It is shown that making use of frictional interactions allows for an effective directed motion of a block produced by asymmetrical vibrations of the underlying plate. We found that the block dynamics exhibits four different regimes of motion depending on the relationships between the values of the frictional forces and the characteristics of the plate vibrations. The optimal motion of the block can be achieved by tuning the amplitudes and frequencies of the vibrations in a controllable way.