Precise Nanoparticle Manipulation Using Femtosecond Laser Trapping

Optical tweezers use strongly focused light for trapping, characterizing, and manipulating objects in the microscopic and nanoscopic regimes. However, fully understanding optical trapping at the nanoscale remains a significant challenge. This holds importance because the nanoscale is the frontier for numerous promising advancements, ranging from enhancing single-molecule investigations in biology to developing hybrid devices for nanoelectronics and photonics and exploring fundamental quantum phenomena in opto-mechanics. We report an experimental and theoretical study of nanoparticles of various sizes, showing the advantages of the immense peak power of ultrashort laser pulses over conventional optical tweezers. We also demonstrate highly stable trapping of nanoparticles for extended durations at low average laser power using femtosecond lasers.