Optical Traps
Optical Traps - Related Videos
13:39
Optical Trapping of Nanoparticles
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Cited by 7 •
2013
The following setup approach details low power optical trapping of dielectric nanoparticles using a double-nanohole in metal film.
07:20
Trapping of Micro Particles in Nanoplasmonic Optical Lattice
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2017
We describe a procedure to optically trap micro-particles in nanoplasmonic optical lattice.
05:45
Measuring the Bending Stiffness of Bacterial Cells Using an Optical Trap
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Cited by 9 •
2010
We present a protocol for bending filamentous bacterial cells attached to a cover-slip surface with an optical trap to measure the cellular bending stiffness.
11:21
Cooling an Optically Trapped Ultracold Fermi Gas by Periodical Driving
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Cited by 1 •
2017
We present a parametric driving method to cool an ultracold Fermi gas in a crossed-beam optical dipole trap. This method selectively removes high-energy atoms from the trap by periodically modulating the trap depth with frequencies that are resonant with the anharmonic components of the trapping potential.
09:12
Construction of a High Resolution Microscope with Conventional and Holographic Optical Trapping Capabilities
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Cited by 4 •
2013
The system described herein employs a traditional optical trap as well as an independent holographic optical trapping line, capable of creating and manipulating multiple traps. This allows for the creation of complex geometric arrangements of refractive particles while also permitting simultaneous high-speed, high-resolution measurements of the activity of biological enzymes.
FAQs
Optical trapping depends on the interaction between two light-induced effects. The spatial intensity gradient of a tightly focused beam produces a gradient force that draws a dielectric particle toward the focus, while radiation pressure pushes it along the direction of light propagation. Stable manipulation requires radiation pressure to be balanced or controlled so the gradient force can maintain the particle near the intended position.
Focusing concentrates light into a small region and creates the spatial intensity gradient needed for positional control. A dielectric particle experiences a force toward the region of higher intensity, allowing its location to be adjusted through the beam focus. This focused interaction gives researchers a way to hold a microscopic probe while observing force or motion in a biological system.
Measurements of force and motion can expose how biomolecular components interact mechanically. When beads are attached to proteins, DNA, membranes, or motor molecules, their movement can report on molecular forces, binding interactions, or transport dynamics. These readouts connect microscopic displacement with the physical behavior of biological structures and machines.
A typical experiment focuses a laser beam, introduces a suitable microscopic object, and positions that object at the focal region. Researchers can attach the bead to a protein, DNA molecule, membrane, or motor molecule before observing its motion under trapping conditions. The resulting changes in position and force provide measurements of the selected biological interaction.
The approach can be adapted to several types of biological targets by using attached microscopic beads as manipulable probes. Relevant targets include proteins, DNA, membranes, and motor molecules. This flexibility allows experiments to examine both individual molecular interactions and larger mechanical behaviors, linking controlled probe movement to processes that operate across different biological structures.
Optical traps provide physical measurements that help connect molecular behavior with biological function. Force, binding, and transport measurements can clarify how biomolecular machines operate, while manipulation of attached probes supports studies of cell mechanics and mechanobiology. The resulting data also help investigate the physical principles governing life, rather than describing biological activity only in chemical or structural terms.