Abstract
Precise control of particle positioning is desirable in many optical propulsion and sorting applications. Here, we develop an integrated platform for particle manipulation consisting of a combined optical nanofiber and optical tweezers system. We show that consistent and reversible transmission modulations arise when individual silica microspheres are introduced to the nanofiber surface using the optical tweezers. The observed transmission changes depend on both particle and fiber diameter and can be used as a reference point for in situ nanofiber or particle size measurement. Thence, we combine scanning electron microscope (SEM) size measurements with nanofiber transmission data to provide calibration for particle-based fiber assessment. This integrated optical platform provides a method for selective evanescent field manipulation of micron-sized particles and facilitates studies of optical binding and light-particle interaction dynamics.
Highlights
A decade after its first realization, Ashkin [1] used a laser to move micron-sized dielectric particles
For a given wavelength, a different fiber diameter results in a different evanescent field structure [15], it is natural to consider the influence of nanofiber diameter on fiber transmission loss
These results provide a useful tool for in situ measurements of nanofiber diameters, which is otherwise time consuming and can often only be measured afterwards using an scanning electron microscope (SEM)
Summary
A decade after its first realization, Ashkin [1] used a laser to move micron-sized dielectric particles. In a manner reminiscent of conventional optical tweezers (OT), the gradient of the evanescent field attracts nearby particles to the fiber surface These are propelled along the direction of light propagation via radiation pressure. Since their establishment as optical propulsion tools [21], nanofibers have been used for bidirectional particle conveyance [22], wavelength selective particle sorting [23] and mass biological particle migration under photopheresis [24] Such methods have exciting applications as particle “conveyor belts” and sorting mechanisms in enclosed systems, as their mm-scale lengths facilitate continuous and long-range trapping at any point in a sample, beyond the limits achievable with conventional focused-beam tweezers
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