Theoretical comparison of optical traps created by standing wave and single beam

We used generalised Lorenz–Mie scattering theory (GLMT) to compare submicron-sized particle optical trapping in a single focused beam and a standing wave. We focus especially on the study of maximal axial trapping force, minimal laser power necessary for confinement, axial trap position, and axial trap stiffness in dependency on trapped sphere radius, refractive index, and Gaussian beam waist size. In the single beam trap (SBT), the range of refractive indices which enable stable trapping depends strongly on the beam waist size (it grows with decreasing waist). On the contrary to the SBT, there are certain sphere sizes (non-trapping radii) that disable sphere confinement in standing wave trap (SWT) for arbitrary value of refractive index. For other sphere radii we show that the SWT enables confinement of high refractive index particle in wider laser beams and provides axial trap stiffness and maximal axial trapping force at least by two orders and one order bigger than in SBT, respectively.     

Second harmonic generation from closed packed hexagonal structure of nano-nickel arrays

A closed packed hexagonal structure of nickel nanoparticles was fabricated by deposition of thin nickel films on self-assembled polystyrene micron spheres, which were made of nanospherical lithography in conjunction with left-off the micro spheres. The optical second harmonic generation from these periodically arrayed nickel nanoparticles reveals intensity with a value much larger than that generated from a uniform nickel-film of the same thickness. Quasi phase matching contributed from Bragg wave vectors of the periodic arrayed nickel nanoparticles can satisfactorily express this enhancement.     

磁性液体中非磁性小球与磁性纳米颗粒的相互作用及磁组装

利用磁性液体与聚苯乙烯小球溶液混合得到的复合磁性液体, 研究了聚苯乙烯小球和磁性纳米颗粒在外加磁场作用下的动力学过程. 实验结果表明, 当外加磁场的方向平行于样品平面时, 聚苯乙烯小球在沿着磁场的方向上表现出相互吸引而形成链状结构, 其动力学过程可分为聚苯乙烯小球被反磁化产生相互吸引而形成短链的快过程以及短链间相互吸引形成长链的慢过程; 当外加磁场的方向垂直于样品平面时, 相邻聚苯乙烯小球表现出排斥的相互作用而形成短程有序的二维结构, 当磁场强度增加到一定的阈值时, 聚苯乙烯小球和磁性纳米颗粒形成的团簇会产生相互吸引而组装成复合式的花瓣结构. 关键词： 磁性液体 磁组装 非磁性颗粒     

An optical nanotrap array movable over a milimetre range

We present the theoretical and experimental study of nondiffracting Bessel beams as a device for optical manipulation and confinement of nanoparticles. We express analytically the optical forces acting on a nanoparticle placed into a single and two counter-propagating non-paraxial nondiffracting beams created behind the axicon. Nanoparticle behavior in these configurations is predicted by computer simulations. Finally we demonstrate experimentally how standing waves created from two independent counter-propagating nondiffraction beams confines polystyrene beads of radii 100 nm, and organizes them into a one-dimensional chain 1 mm long. Phase shift in one beam causes the motion of the whole structure of the standing wave together with any confined objects over its extent. PACS 42.25.-p; 42.50.Vk; 82.70.Dd     

Optical bottles: A quantitative analysis of optically confined nanoparticle ensembles in suspension

We present a novel method, an optical bottle, that uses a focused laser beam to trap and a second laser to analyze optically confined multiple nanoparticles. A theoretical framework based on the mechanical equilibrium of the optical radiation pressure produced by the focused laser beam and the osmotic pressure produced by the enriched particle concentration in the optical trap is developed for analyzing the ensemble behavior of the optically confined nanoparticles. Experiments were conducted for fluorescently labeled polystyrene nanospheres and unilamellar phospholipid vesicles to determine the optical trapping energy of individual particles as well as the osmotic compressibility of the colloids. The new method is not limited by the particle concentration and is relatively easy to implement.     

Spectral line narrowing in a gas by atoms trapped in a standing light wave

This paper presents results of a theoretical analysis of a new method for eliminating the Doppler broadening of spectral lines and the broadening by the transit time of atoms through a light beam. The atomic motion in a one-dimensional standing wave is studied and the conditions for translational-to-vibrational motion transformation are found. The variation in the Doppler contour by the trapping effect is investigated. It is illustrated, in particular, that the width of the narrow peak at the line centre depends mainly on the finite transit time of the atoms through the light beam. Next it is shown that, by accumulating slow atoms in a three-dimensional standing wave, it is possible, in principle, to observe narrow peaks with their widths determined only by the natural line width. The possibility of experimentally detecting of the phenomenon is discussed.     

Acoustic radiation force on an air bubble and soft fluid spheres in ideal liquids: Example of a high-order Bessel beam of quasi-standing waves

The partial wave series for the scattering of a high-order Bessel beam (HOBB) of acoustic quasi-standing waves by an air bubble and fluid spheres immersed in water and centered on the axis of the beam is applied to the calculation of the acoustic radiation force. A HOBB refers to a type of beam having an axial amplitude null and an azimuthal phase gradient. Radiation force examples obtained through numerical evaluation of the radiation force function are computed for an air bubble, a hexane, a red blood and mercury fluid spheres in water. The examples were selected to illustrate conditions having progressive, standing and quasi-standing waves with appropriate selection of the waves’ amplitude ratio. An especially noteworthy result is the lack of a specific vibrational mode contribution to the radiation force determined by appropriate selection of the HOBB parameters.     

Ultrasonic-trap-enhanced selectivity in capillary electrophoresis

We combine ultrasonic trapping and capillary electrophoresis (CE) with the goal to detect ultra-low concentrations of proteins via size-selective separation and enrichment of antibody-coated latex spheres. An 8.5 MHz standing ultrasonic wave is longitudinally coupled into the sub-100- micro m diam capillary of the CE system. Competition between acoustic and viscous forces result in in-flow separation of micro m-diam spheres according to their size. Experiments separating 2.8- and 2.1- micro m-diam fluorescent latex particles, which model a protein-specific immunocomplex/free particle mixture, indicate a potential improvement of the concentration limit of detection of 10(4) compared to current CE systems. Theoretical calculations show room for further improvement.     

Acoustic radiation force on a sphere in standing and quasi-standing zero-order Bessel beam tweezers

Starting from the exact acoustic scattering from a sphere immersed in an ideal fluid and centered along the propagation axis of a standing or quasi-standing zero-order Bessel beam, explicit partial-wave representations for the radiation force are derived. A standing or a quasi-standing acoustic field is the result of propagating two equal or unequal amplitude zero-order Bessel beams, respectively, along the same axis but in opposite sense. The Bessel beam is characterized by the half-cone angle β of its plane wave components, such that β = 0 represents a plane wave. It is assumed here that the half-cone angle β for each of the counter-propagating acoustic Bessel beams is equal. Fluid, elastic and viscoelastic spheres immersed in water are treated as examples. Results indicate the capability of manipulating spherical targets based on their mechanical and acoustical properties. This condition provides an impetus for further designing acoustic tweezers operating with standing or quasi-standing Bessel acoustic waves. Potential applications include particle manipulation in micro-fluidic lab-on-chips as well as in reduced gravity environments.     

Optical switching based on the manipulation of microparticles in a colloidal liquid using strong scattering force

This paper demonstrates the realization of an optical switch by optically manipulating a large number of polystyrene spheres contained in a capillary.The strong scattering force exerted on polystyrene spheres with a large diameter of 4.3 μm is employed to realize the switching operation.A transparent window is opened for the signal light when the polystyrene spheres originally located at the beam centre are driven out of the beam region by the strong scattering force induced by the control light.The switching dynamics under different incident powers is investigated and compared with that observed in the optical switch based on the formation of optical matter.It is found that a large extinction ratio of ～ 30 dB and fast switching-on and switching-off times can be achieved in this type of switch.     

CONSTRUCTION OF AN OPTICAL TWEEZERS—CALCULATION AND EXPERIMENTS

We report the construction of an optical tweezers system and the results of the trapping and the moving of living algal cells. Experimental study on trapping polystyrene spheres demonstrates the effects of the system parameters on the trap. The trapping forces on dielectric spheres are calculated using Ashkin's ray-optics model. The result shows that an objective with higher numerical aperture can build a more stable trap along axial direction than an objective with lower numerical aperture, though their transverse trapping forces are on the same order.     

Acoustic radiation force on a multilayered sphere in a Gaussian standing field

We develop a model for calculating the radiation force on spherically symmetric multilayered particles based on the acoustic scattering approach. An expression is derived for the radiation force on a multilayered sphere centered on the axis of a Gaussian standing wave propagating in an ideal fluid. The effects of the sound absorption of the materials and sound wave on acoustic radiation force of a multilayered sphere immersed in water are analyzed, with particular emphasis on the shell thickness of every layer, and the width of the Gaussian beam. The results reveal that the existence of particle trapping behavior depends on the choice of the non-dimensional frequency ka, as well as the shell thickness of each layer. This study provides a theoretical basis for the development of acoustical tweezers in a Gaussian standing wave, which may benefit the improvement and development of acoustic control technology, such as trapping, sorting, and assembling a cell, and drug delivery applications.     

TEM01模式激光对两能级原子的作用力研究

推导了两能级原子在稳态和小速度一阶微扰近似下的受力矢量方程，并分析表明ＴＥＭ０１模光场以原子的作用力中存在旋涡力，对在大正失谐δ〉〉Ω０〉〉Г和ｚ〈〈ｚ０＝ｋｗ＾２／λ条件下的ＴＥＭ０１模行波和驻波场中原子的受力进行了分析，对行波场，自发辐射对原子运动的影响很大，但在ｒ〈〈λ区域内原子受到横向囚禁力；对驻波场，自发辐射的影响可以忽略，考虑在ｚ方向波长范围内原子的平均受力得到的结论为：在横向，除了有     

Tomographic imaging of a suspending single live cell using optical tweezer-combined full-field optical coherence tomography

We propose a label-free depth-resolved tomographic scheme for imaging a single live cell in fluid. This approach utilizes a modified time-domain full-field optical coherence tomography (FF-OCT) system combined with an optical tweezer technique. The optical trap for holding a moving specimen is made by tightly focusing a 1064 nm Q-switching pulsed laser beam with a 1.0 NA microscope objective in the sample arm of the FF-OCT part. By cosharing the probe for both systems, the optical actions of trapping and cellular resolution tomographic imaging could be achieved simultaneously. Feasibility of the combined system is demonstrated by imaging micron-sized polystyrene beads and a living suspension cell in medium.     

Optical trapping of gold nanoparticles by cylindrical vector beam

Optical trapping of gold nanoparticles is experimentally demonstrated using radially and azimuthally polarized beams. The transverse optical trapping stiffness of gold nanoparticles is measured. The radially polarized beam exhibits a higher trapping efficiency than the azimuthally polarized beam and the Gaussian beam. The transverse stiffness of particles with different diameters is measured experimentally and calculated via the discrete-dipole approximation method, and good agreement between theory and experiment is found.     

Structure of metallic nanowires and nanoclusters formed in superfluid helium

It is shown that metallic nanowires (5–8 nm in diameter) that form during laser ablation of Ni, Pb, In, and Sn targets embedded in HeII contain extended single-crystal segments, while spherical clusters (about 2 μm in diameter) that form under these conditions have a regular shape and an atomically smooth surface. Such structures are explained by melting of metal ablation products under their coalescence in HeII. The short-term action of a low-intensity beam of electrons with an energy of 200 keV initiates the explosion in metallic spheres preserved in the vacuum chamber of a transmission electron microscope, which is accompanied with the formation of thousands of clusters with a diameter of a few nanometers. This effect is due to metastability of internal mechanical stresses produced upon sharp cooling of molten spheres by liquid helium. A mechanism of condensation of atoms and nanoparticles in quantized vortices of superfluid helium is proposed.     

Numerical study of optical trapping properties of nanoparticle on metallic film with periodic structure

Based on the three-dimensional dispersive finite difference time domain method and Maxwell stress tensor equation,the optical trapping properties of nanoparticle placed on the gold film with periodic circular holes are investigated numerically. Surface plasmon polaritons are excited on the metal-dielectric interface, with particular emphasis on the crucial role in tailoring the optical force acting on a nearby nanoparticle. Utilizing a first order corrected electromagnetic field components for a fundamental Gaussian beam, the incident beam is added into the calculation model of the proposed method. To obtain the detailed trapping properties of nanoparticle, the selected calculations on the effects of beam waist radius, sizes of nanoparticle and circular holes, distance between incident Gaussian beam and gold film, material of nanoparticle and polarization angles of incident wave are analyzed in detail to demonstrate that the optical-trapping force can be explained as a virtual spring which has a restoring force to perform positive and negative forces as a nanoparticle moves closer to or away from the centers of circular holes. The results of optical trapping properties of nanoparticle in the vicinity of the gold film could provide guidelines for further research on the optical system design and manipulation of arbitrary composite nanoparticles.     

Scattering of a Bessel beam by a sphere

The exact scattering by a sphere centered on a Bessel beam is expressed as a partial wave series involving the scattering angle relative to the beam axis and the conical angle of the wave vector components of the Bessel beam. The sphere is assumed to have isotropic material properties so that the nth partial wave amplitude for plane wave scattering is proportional to a known partial-wave coefficient. The scattered partial waves in the Bessel beam case are also proportional to the same partial-wave coefficient but now the weighting factor depends on the properties of the Bessel beam. When the wavenumber-radius product ka is large, for rigid or soft spheres the scattering is peaked in the backward and forward directions along the beam axis as well as in the direction of the conical angle. These properties are geometrically explained and some symmetry properties are noted. The formulation is also suitable for elastic and fluid spheres. A partial wave expansion of the Bessel beam is noted.     

电子在激光驻波场中运动产生的太赫兹及X射线辐射研究

采用单电子模型和经典辐射理论分别对低能和高能电子在线偏振激光驻波场中的运动和辐射过程进行了研究. 结果表明: 垂直于激光电场方向入射的低速电子在激光驻波场中随着光强的增大, 逐渐从一维近周期运动演变为二维折叠运动, 并产生强的微米量级波长的太赫兹辐射; 高能电子垂直或者平行于激光电场方向入射到激光驻波场中, 都会产生波长在几个纳米的高频辐射; 低能电子与激光驻波场作用中, 激光强度影响着电子的运动形式、辐射频率以及辐射强度; 高能电子入射时, 激光强度影响了电子高频辐射的强度, 电子初始能量影响着辐射的频率; 电子能量越高, 产生的辐射频率越大. 研究表明可以由激光加速电子的方式得到不同能量的电子束, 并利用电子束在激光驻波场的辐射使之成为太赫兹和X射线波段的小型辐射源. 研究结果可以为实验研究和利用激光驻波场中的电子辐射提供依据.     

Observation of collimation and decollimation of an atomic beam in a misaligned standing wave

This paper reports an experimental study on the collimation and decollimation of an atomic beam in a misaligned standing wave, in which the effective detuning caused by the Doppler effect is affected by the longitudinal velocity of the atomic beam. The experiment shows that in a strong field with red detuning between laser field and atomic transition frequency, laser heating in a normal standing wave becomes laser cooling in a misaligned standing wave for an approriate misalignment angle. For blue detuning, laser cooling in a standing wave can also become laser heating in a misaligned standing wave for an appropriate condition. These results ca be used in controling atomic motion.