Radiation forces on a Mie particle in the evanescent field of a resonance waveguide structure.

Abstract

Evanescent waves of a guided mode carry both momentum and energy, which enables them to move small objects located on a waveguide surface. This optical force can be used for optical near-field manipulation, arrangement, and acceleration of particles. In this paper, using arbitrary beam theory, the optical force on a dielectric particle in the evanescent wave of a resonance waveguiding structure is investigated. Using Maxwell's equations and applying the boundary conditions, all the field components and a generalized dispersion relation are obtained. An expression for the evanescent field is derived in terms of the spherical wave functions. Cartesian components of the radiation force are analytically formulated and numerically evaluated by ignoring the multiple scattering that occurs between the sphere and plane surface of the structure. Our numerical data show that both the horizontal and vertical force components and the forward particle velocity are enhanced significantly in the proposed resonance structure compared to those reported for three-layer conventional waveguides. Exerting stronger force on macro- and nanoparticles can be very useful to perform advanced experiments in solutions with high viscosity and experiments on biological cells. In addition, this resonance planar structure can be mounted on an inverted optical microscope stage for imaging the motion of nanoparticles especially when the particle collides and interacts with objects.