Publications | mysite

Tissue geometry and mechanochemical feedback initiate rotational migration in Drosophila
S. Schwabach*, S. Santhosh*, A.M. Williams, M. Cetera, M. Serra, and S. Horne-Badovinac
(submitted) biorxiv: 2025.09.03.674060v1 [PDF]

Coherent Structures in Active Flows on Dynamic Surfaces
S. Santhosh, C. Zhu, B. Fencil, and M. Serra
(submitted) biorxiv: 2025.05.23.655805v1 [PDF]

Morphogen Patterning in Dynamic Tissues
A. M. Plum, and M. Serra
(submitted) biorxiv:2025.01.04.631293v1 [PDF]

Control of epiblast cell fate by mechanical cues
C. Guillot*, Y. Djeffal*, M. Serra*, and O. Pourquié
(submitted) biorxiv:2024.06.24.600402 [PDF]

Advances in the mechano-chemical modeling of vertebrate gastrulation
A. M. Plum, M. Serra, and C. J. Weijer
Biochemical Society Transactions 00 1–10 (2025) [PDF]

Dynamical systems of fate and form in development
A. M. Plum and M. Serra
Seminars in Cell and Developmental Biology 172, 103620 (2025) [PDF]

Control of tissue flows and embryo geometry in avian gastrulation
G. Serrano Nájera*, A. M. Plum*, B. Steventon, C. J. Weijer, and M. Serra
Nature Communications 16, 5174 (2025) [PDF]
[PDF]

Extracellular volume expansion drives vertebrate axis elongation
A. Michaut, A. Mongera, A. Gupta, M. Serra,..., O. Pourquie
Current Biology 35, 1-11 (2025) [PDF]

A multimodal zebrafish developmental atlas reveals the transition of late-vertebrate pluripotent axial progenitors
M. Lange,..., M. Serra, N. Neff, A.O. Pisco, and L.A. Royer
Cell 187, 23 p6742-6759.e17 (2024) [PDF]

Optimal Control of Short-Time Attractors in Active Nematics
C. Sinigaglia, F. Braghin, and M. Serra
PRL 132, 218302 (2024) [PDF]

A mechanochemical model recapitulates distinct vertebrate gastrulation modes M. Serra, G. S. Nájera, M. Chuai, A. M. Plum, S. Santhosh, V. Spandan, C. J. Weijer, and L. Mahadevan Science Advances 9.49 (2023) [PDF] Featured image in Science Advances, UCSD News

Reconstruction of distinct vertebrate gastrulation modes via modulation of key cell behaviors in the chick embryo
M.Chuai*, G. S. Nájera*, M. Serra, L. Mahadevan, and C. J. Weijer
Science Advances 9.1 (2023) [PDF]

Defect-mediated dynamics of coherent structures in active nematics
M. Serra, L. Lemma, L. Giomi, Z. Dogic, and L. Mahadevan
Nature Physics 1-7 (2023) [PDF]

Spike formation theory in three-dimensional flow separation
S. Santhosh, H. Qin, B. F. Klose, G. B. Jacobs, J. Vétel, and M. Serra
J. Fluid Mech. 969, A25 (2023) [PDF]

Optimal Locomotion for Limbless Crawlers
S. Santhosh and M. Serra
PRE 106,024610 (2022) [PDF]

Detecting Lagrangian coherent structures from sparse and noisy trajectory data
S. Molawi, M. Serra, E. Maiorino, and L. Mahadevan
J. Fluid Mech. 948, A4. (2022) [PDF] Python code available here

Optimal policies for mitigating pandemic costs: a tutorial model
M. Serra*, S. al-Mosleh*, S Ganga Prasath*, V. Raju*, S. Mantena, J. Chandra, S. Iams, and L. Mahadevan
Physical Biology, 19 055001 (2022) [PDF] MATLAB code available here

Horizontal transport in oil-spill modeling
R. Duran, T. Nordam, M. Serra, and C. Barker
Elsevier, In Marine Hydrocarbon Spill Assessments, pp. 59-96., (2021) [PDF]

A Measure of Morphodynamics
M. Serra and L. Mahadevan
SIAM News, vol. 54, n. 03, April (2021) [PDF]

Objective early identification of kinematic instabilities in shear flows B. F. Klose*, M. Serra*, and G. B. Jacobs arXiv:2009.05851 [PDF]

Finite-time Lyapunov exponents in the instantaneous limit and material transport
P. Nolan, M. Serra, and S. Ross
Nonlinear Dynamics, 1-28 (2020) [PDF]

Search and rescue at sea aided by hidden flow structures
M. Serra, P. Sathe, I. Rypina, A. Kirincich, S. Ross, P. Lermusiaux, A. Allen, T. Peacock, and G. Haller
Nature Communications, 11 2525 (2020). [PDF] MATLAB code available here
MIT News, Scientific American, BBC Science, AMS, Science Journal for kids version

Dynamic morphoskeletons in development
M. Serra, S. Streichan, M. Chuai, C. J. Weijer, and L. Mahadevan
PNAS 117.21 (2020) [PDF] - featured on Harvard SEAS News

Vortex boundaries as barriers to diffusive vorticity transport in two-dimensional flows
S. Katsanoulis, M. Farazmand, M. Serra, and G. Haller
Physical Review Fluids, 5 024701 (2020) [PDF] MATLAB code available here

The Kinematics of Lagrangian Flow Separation in External Aerodynamics
B. F. Klose, G. B. Jacobs, and M. Serra
AIAA Journal, (2020) [PDF]

Material spike formation in highly unsteady separated flows
M. Serra, S. Crouzat, G. Simon, J. Vétel, and G. Haller
J. Fluid Mech. 883 A30 (2019) [PDF]

Variational Lagrangian formulation of the Euler equations for incompressible flow: A simple derivation
M. Farazmand and M. Serra
arXiv:1807.02726 (2018) [PDF]

Exact Theory of Material Spike Formation in Flow Separation
M. Serra, J. Vétel, and G. Haller
J. Fluid Mech. 845 (2018) 51-92. [PDF]

Uncovering the Edge of the Polar Vortex
M. Serra, P. Sathe, F. Beron-Vera, and G. Haller
J. Atm. Sci. 74 (11) 3871–3885, (2017). [PDF]
Featured on Forbes - (31-01-19)

Efficient Computation of Null Geodesics with Applications to Coherent Vortex Detection
M. Serra and G. Haller
Proc. of the Royal Soc. A (2017) 473 20160807. [PDF] MATLAB code available here
Featured on the journal's cover page

Forecasting Long-Lived Lagrangian Vortices from their Objective Eulerian Footprints
M. Serra and G. Haller
J. Fluid Mech. 813 (2017) 436-457. [PDF]

Objective Eulerian coherent structures
M. Serra and G. Haller
Chaos, 26 (2016) 053110. [PDF] Editor's pick

Dependent modal space control: Experimental test rig
M. Serra, F. Ripamonti, and F. Resta
J. Vibration and Control (2015): 1077546315616699. [PDF]

Dependent modal space control
M. Serra, F. Ripamonti, and F. Resta
Smart Materials and Structures 22.10 (2013): 105004. [PDF]

Nonlinear Dynamics and Physics of Complex Systems

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