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Bacteria in bulk fluids swim collectively and display fascinating emergentdynamics. Although bacterial collective swimming in three-dimensional (3D)geometries has been well studied, its counterpart in confined two-dimensional(2D) geometries relevant to natural habitats of bacteria is still poorlyunderstood. Here, through carefully designed experiments on Escherichia coli inHele-Shaw chambers, we show that a small change in the degree of confinementleads to a drastic change in bacterial collective swimming. While long-rangenematic order emerges for bacteria that can cross during encounters, a slightdecrease of the chamber height prevents the crossing, leading to the formationof bacterial clusters with short-range polar order. By tracking the swimmingkinetics of individual bacteria, we reveal the microscopic origins of the twocollective phases. Our study provides important insights into bacterialcollective swimming under confinement and demonstrates a convenient way tocontrol the emergent symmetry of collective phases.

To cross or not to cross: collective swimming of Escherichia coli under two-dimensional confinement