  We present a theoretical description and an experimental realization of a
thermocapillary dipole induced in a Hele-Shaw cell under a steady temperature
gradient. We demonstrate experimentally how several dipoles can be superposed
in order to create various 2D flow patterns, and how a confined dipole can act
as a thermocapillary motor for driving fluids in microfluidic circuits. In
addition, we show how the principles behind the thermocapillary dipole can be
applied in order to drive thermocapillary swimmers on fluid-liquid interfaces.
