Related papers: Nanomechanical sensor resolving impulsive forces b…
Levitated optomechanics is showing potential for precise force measurements. Here, we report a case study, to show experimentally the capacity of such a force sensor. Using an electric field as a tool to detect a Coulomb force applied onto…
Miniaturized mechanical resonators have proven to be excellent force sensors. However, they usually rely on resonant sensing schemes, and their excellent performance cannot be utilized for the detection of static forces. Here, we report on…
Nano- and micromechanical oscillators with high quality (Q) factors have gained much attention for their potential application as ultrasensitive detectors. In contrast to micro-fabricated devices, optically trapped nanoparticles in vacuum…
Nanomechanical resonators are widely operated as force and mass sensors with sensitivities in the zepto-Newton and yocto-gram regime, respectively. Their accuracy, however, is usually undermined by high uncertainties in the effective mass…
Manipulating the motions of macroscopic objects near their quantum mechanical uncertainties has been desired in diverse fields, including fundamental physics, sensing, and transducers. Despite significant progresses in ground-state cooling…
Following the first demonstration of a levitated nanosphere cooled to the quantum ground state in 2020 [1], macroscopic quantum sensors are seemingly on the horizon. The nanosphere's large mass as compared to other quantum systems enhances…
Torque sensors such as the torsion balance enabled the first determination of the gravitational constant by Cavendish and the discovery of Coulomb's law. Torque sensors are also widely used in studying small-scale magnetism, the Casimir…
Optically levitated macroscopic objects are a powerful tool in the field of force sensing, owing to high sensitivity, absolute force calibration, environmental isolation and the advanced degree of control over their dynamics that have been…
Oscillators based on levitated particles are promising for the development of ultrasensitive force detectors. The theoretical performance of levitated nanomechanical sensors is usually characterized by the so-called thermal noise limit…
Using light as a probe to detect a mechanical motion is one of the most successful experimental approaches in physics. The history of mechanical sensing based on the reflection, refraction and scattering of light dates back to the 16th…
We propose a protocol to measure impulses beyond the standard quantum limit. The protocol reduces noise in all three spatial dimensions and consists of squeezing a mechanical system's state via a series of jumps in the frequency of the…
Nanomechanical oscillators are at the heart of ultrasensitive detectors of force, mass and motion. As these detectors progress to even better sensitivity, they will encounter measurement limits imposed by the laws of quantum mechanics. For…
Sensing weak forces through observing a mechanical motion near or below its quantum zero-point fluctuation has been desired in diverse areas. While mechanical oscillators have played a crucial role in such studies, their application to…
We investigate experimentally the dynamics of a non-spherical levitated nanoparticle in vacuum. In addition to translation and rotation motion, we observe the light torque-induced precession and nutation of the trapped particle. We provide…
Since the advent of atomic force microscopy, mechanical resonators have been used to study a wide variety of phenomena, such as the dynamics of individual electron spins, persistent currents in normal metal rings, and the Casimir force. Key…
Levitated nanoparticles are being intensively investigated from two different perspectives: as a potential realisation of macroscopic quantum coherence; and as ultra-sensitive sensors of force, down to the zeptoNewton level, with a range of…
Using weak values amplification angular resolution limits, we theoretically investigate the gravitational sensing of objects. By inserting a force-sensing pendulum into a weak values interferometer, the optical response can sense…
Optically levitated nanoparticles offer enormous potential for precision sensing. However, as for any other metrology device, the absolute measurement performance of a levitated-particle sensor is limited by the accuracy of the calibration…
Quantum measurements of mechanical systems can produce optical squeezing via ponderomotive forces. Its observation requires high environmental isolation and efficient detection, typically achieved by using optical cavities and cryogenic…
Nanomechanical oscillators have been employed as transducers to measure force, mass and charge with high sensitivity. They are also used in opto- or electromechanical experiments with the goal of quantum control and phenomena of mechanical…