  Skyrmions have attracted rapidly growing interest due to their topological
properties and unique aspects for potential novel applications such as data
storage and soft robotics. They can also serve as key elements for materials by
design, self-assembly, and functional soft materials. While not real particles,
these skyrmions behave like particles-they interact with each other and can be
actuated by means of electric field, surface anchoring, and light. On the other
hand, they are field configurations which have properties not possessed by real
particles. Here, we show that, by means of alignment induced attractive and
repulsive walls, skyrmions in chiral nematic liquid crystals can be precisely
controlled and programmed to serve as suitable building blocks for the
realization of the above goals. Our work may stimulate new experimental efforts
and concomitant applications in this direction.
