Related papers: Rotational dynamics of optically trapped polymeric…
A nanofiber-based optical tweezer is demonstrated. Trapping is achieved by combining attractive near-field optical gradient forces with repulsive electrostatic forces. Silica-coated Fe$_2$O$_3$ nanospheres of 300 diameter are trapped as…
We present a novel approach to determine the optical properties of materials in the nanoscale range using optical tweezers (OT). Fluorescent polymer-based nanostructures (pdots) are optically trapped in a Gaussian beam OT and the trap…
We report optical trapping and transport of nanoparticles in a moving interference pattern in hollow-core photonic crystal fiber at atmospheric pressure, when competition between trapping and drag forces causes the particle velocity to…
We demonstrate photophoretic force-based optical trapping of multiple absorbing particles in air by loosely focusing a Gaussian beam with a series of convex lenses of different focal lengths, and investigate the dependence of the number of…
The manipulation of microparticles using optical forces has led to many applications in the life and physical sciences. To extend optical trapping towards the nano-regime, in this work we demonstrate trapping of single nanoparticles in…
We investigate the dynamics of high aspect ratio nanowires trapped axially in a single gradient force optical tweezers. A power spectrum analysis of the Brownian dynamics reveals a broad spectral resonance of the order of a kHz with peak…
Rotational optical tweezers are used to probe the mechanical properties of unknown microsystems. Quantifying the angular trap stiffness is essential for interpreting the rotational dynamics of probe particles. While methods to determine…
Nanomechanical devices have attracted the interest of a growing interdisciplinary research community, since they can be used as highly sensitive transducers for various physical quantities. Exquisite control over these systems facilitates…
The evanescent field outside an optical nanofiber (ONF) can create optical traps for neutral atoms. We present a non-destructive method to characterize such trapping potentials. An off-resonance linearly polarized probe beam that propagates…
We present experimental techniques and results related to the optimization and characterization of our nanofiber-based atom trap [Vetsch et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 203603 (2010)]. The atoms are confined in an optical lattice which is…
We report on rotating an optically trapped silica nanoparticle in vacuum by transferring spin angular momentum of light to the particle's mechanical angular momentum. At sufficiently low damping, realized at pressures below $10^{-5}$ mbar,…
Light that carries linear or angular momentum can interact with a mechanical object giving rise to optomechanical effects. In particular, a photon transfers its intrinsic angular momentum to an object when the object either absorbs the…
We report an experimental observation of a record-breaking ultra-high rotation frequency about 6 GHz in an optically levitated nanoparticle system. We optically trap a nanoparticle in the gravity direction with a high numerical aperture…
We study a nanofabricated silicon rod levitated in an optical trap. By manipulating the polarization of the light we gain full control over the ro-translational dynamics of the rod. We are able to trap both its centre-of-mass and align it…
We report a study on the dynamics of absorbing asymmetric carbon clusters trapped by a loosely focused Gaussian beam using photophoretic force. At high laser powers, all the trapped clusters display rotation coupled with oscillation along…
Advances in optical trapping design principles have led to tremendous progress in manipulating nanoparticles (NPs) with diverse functionalities in different environments using bulky systems. However, efficient control and manipulation of…
Micron sized, neutral, non-dielectric particles immersed in a viscous fluid can be trapped in the focal plane of a Gaussian beam. A particle can absorb energy from such a beam with a large radial intensity gradient, resulting in substantial…
We present a novel technique for measuring the characteristics of a magneto-optical trap for cold atoms by monitoring the spontaneous emission from trapped atoms coupled into the guided mode of a tapered optical nanofiber. We show that the…
Using optical measurements, we demonstrate that the rotation of micron-scale graphene nanoplatelets levitated in a quadrupole ion trap in high vacuum can be frequency locked to an applied radio frequency (rf) electric field. Over time,…
We experimentally demonstrate efficient interfacing of a large number of atoms to an optical nanofiber using an optical lattice with tunable spacing ($0.88-1.5~\mu$m) projected onto the nanofiber. The lattice beam and reflections from the…