We demonstrate optical trapping carbon nanoparticle agglomerations in the air employing photophoretic forces. Three types of laser beams were used for optical trapping: a focused Hermite-Gaussian laser beam (TEM10), an optical bottle beam and a hollow optical beam generated by Bessel beams superposition. The experimental results for each of the laser beams types are shown. Description of trapping features in each case is shown. Perspectives of application for each type of laser beams for three-dimensional optical manipulation are discussed.
The optical manipulation of micro- and nanoscale objects with a laser beam was
first demonstrated by A. Ashkin [
This paper presents a comparison of the optical manipulation of light-absorbing
carbon nanoparticle agglomerations using laser beams of three types: 1) a focused
Hermite-Gaussian (HG) laser beam (TEM10); 2) an optical bottle beam (a beam with
dark regions of exactly zero intensity surrounded by regions of higher intensity) [
In [
The Hermite-Gaussian mode is described by the following well known expression
[
w z w z w z x2 y2 exp w2 z exp i n m 1 arctg ik x2 y2
2R z z
, z0 (1) kw2 z 2 1 2 z 2 where z0 , w z w 1 , R z z 1 ,
2 z0 z0 w is the Gaussian beam waist, R(z) is the Gaussian beam’s wavefront curvature radius, z0 is the Rayleigh range, k is the wavenumber of light, Hn(x) is the Hermite polynomial.
Such beams are propagation-invariant (up to scale); that is, they keep structure of the transverse intensity distribution. Figure 1 shows the cross-section profiles of the intensity distribution for the different orders Hermite-Gaussian beams. We see that the order of a HG beam determines the number of generated intensity peaks, each of which can be used as an optical trap to capture light-absorbing particles in gaseous media.
a) b) c) d) Fig. 1. – Cross-section profiles of the intensity distribution for Hermite-Gaussian laser beams: (a) TEM10, (b) TEM20, (c) TEM11, (d) TEM22
In optical trapping and optical guiding experiments, we use a laser TEM10 (λ = 457 nm, with a maximum output power of 2000 mW) (Fig. 8). An optical scheme of the experimental setup shown in Figure 2a. A generated beam is focused horizontally by a micro-objective MO (3.7×, NA=0.1) in the area inside the glass cuvette C containing a suspension of micro-particles. Observation of the particle trapping is possible due to the scattered light recorded by the video camera Cam (Panasonic HDC-SD800, 1920 × 1080 pixels). A neutral density filter F has been used to adjust the power of the laser beam.
To demonstrate the optical trapping and holding of absorbing particles, we used carbon nanoparticle agglomeration. The typical size of the agglomerations ranged to up to tens of micrometers (Figure 2b). The particles were sprayed with a syringe pump. Therefore, the particles initially had a significant acceleration directed to the bottom of the cuvette. The particles settled in the bottom of the cuvette under the influence of gravity. Some of them were trapped in the area of the laser beam. The guiding of the trapped particles was carried out by moving the micro-objective, which can be moved in three mutually perpendicular directions. As a result, movement of the focused laser beam results in movement of the trapped micro-particles.
Figure 3 shows the movement stage of two carbon nanoparticle agglomerations, each of which was trapped in the various intensity peaks of the HG TEM10 laser beam. In this case, we carried out a controlled movement of the optically trapped micro-objects.
y
MO
C x a) 20 μm b) x z 5 mm c) 5 mm d) 5 mm
Thus, the structure of the HG beams allows simultaneous, parallel threedimensional movement of several trapped light-absorbing micro-particles. The particles retain their relative position when moving in the space. These beams offer new opportunities for the controlled, multiple simultaneous manipulation of lightabsorbing non-spherical micro-objects. For example, it is possible to transport an array of light-absorbing particles, while their original location relative to each other will remain. Furthermore, this technique does not require the additional modulators to create multiple optical traps.
Photophoresis phenomenon causes a light-absorbing object to move in a direction
from the more heated to the less heated side of object. This makes it impossible to
trap spherical micro-objects with a single Gaussian beam. The so-called optical bottle
beams allow stable three-dimensional trapping of light-absorbing micro-particles to
be carried out in gaseous media. An optical bottle beam is a beam with dark regions
of exactly zero intensity surrounded by regions of higher intensity. For generation
optical bottle beams, we used the method based on the formation of Bessel beams
superposition [
For the experiments with optical bottle beams, we used the particles presented in Figure 2b. Figure 4 shows the optical scheme of the experimental setup. The laser beam is transformed by the diffractive optical element DOE focused in the area inside glass cuvette by the micro-objective MO (3.7×, NA = 0.1). Observation was carried out by a lens L3. Adjustment of the output power of the laser beam allows us to vary intensity of formed traps and, therefore, change the values of the photophoretic forces acting on the trapped particles.
Figure 5 illustrates a typical trapping single carbon nanoparticle agglomeration with a single optical bottle. It can be seen that the trapped agglomeration remains in the optical trap during its transfer. We moved the optical trap by moving the focusing micro-objective MO, similar to experiments with a Hermite-Gaussian TEM10 laser beam. For this experiment, we have managed to move the agglomeration along the beam axis at distance of about 340 µm. The estimated value of the power within the boundaries of the optical bottle is about 16 mW.
The methods described in [
Hollow optical beams (HOBs) are optical beams with zero axial intensity along the
propagation axis. These beams have diffraction-free properties on a limited interval
along the optical axis. Due to such a configuration, the HOBs are universal optical
traps to trapping both transparent and opaque micro-particles [
There are various methods of forming such HOBs that have a predetermined
crosssectional shape [
In optical trapping experiments with HOBs, we used a solid-state laser L (λ = 532 nm, with a maximum output power of 500 mW) (Figure 6). The laser beam was expanded with a telescope (L1 with f1 = 15 mm and L2 with f2 = 35 mm) to illuminate the DOE formed HOB. An airborne absorbing particle in a cuvette is trapped in the area of minimum intensity of the generated HOB. Observation of the particle trapping was possible due to the scattered light recorded by the video camera Cam (MDCE-5, 1280 × 1024 pixels). The particles were imaged through a micro-objective MO (8×, NA=0.2).
To demonstrate the optical trapping and holding of absorbing particles, we used carbon nanoparticle agglomeration as in the experiments described above (Figure 2b). Figure 7 shows the motion stages of a carbon nanoparticle agglomeration trapped by the HOB with an intensity distribution in the form of a regular pentagon contour. It can be clearly seen that the particle is also moved in a limited volume. At the time when the trapped particles remain inside the region of minimum intensity of the formed HOB, other particles settle on the bottom of the cuvette under the influence of gravity. Trapped particles do not leave the boundaries of the HOB because photophoretic force push them away from the region of maximum intensity in the region on the optical axis of the beam.
The use of additional focusing optics enables the generation of converging HOBs, which have predetermined intensity distribution. It is therefore possible to form a complex spatial configuration of the optical beams. Each of these beams can be used to hold the particles in the region of desired size and shape. This ‘storage’ of microparticles can be used for contactless transport of microscopic objects. Furthermore, they can be used to study the interaction of various micro-objects trapped in a limited volume.
The paper describes the various ways to manipulate air-borne light-absorbing microscopic objects in air with laser beams of different types. The results of trapping and manipulation experiments for each of laser beam types are shown. It is shown that:
1) With the use of Hermite-Gaussian beams, it is possible to achieve stable multiple trapping and guiding of light-absorbing non-spherical particles in generated separate intensity peaks;
2) With the use of optical bottle beams, it is possible to achieve stable trapping and guiding of the same particles at distances of hundreds of times their own dimensions; 3) With the use of hollow optical beams with a predetermined shape, trapping and holding light-absorbing particles can be carried out inside an area of predetermined shape within the area given shape, the dimensions of which exceed by ten times the particles’ size.
None of these cases d require high-power lasers (enough power about 10-20 mW),
due to the fact that photophoretic forces exceed the radiation pressure forces at the
order of atmospheric pressure. [
This work was supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation and Russian Foundation for Basic Research Grants No. 14-07-97038, No. 14-07-31291, No. 14-07-00177.