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When geometry matters: Gradient-wall microresonators enable large-scale optical trapping

Researchers develop gradient-thickness-protected microbottle resonator for large-scale optical trapping via whispering-gallery modes, enabling stable trapping over nearly 200 micrometers with ultralow optical power. The design supports high-order axial modes, generating multiple optical trapping sites along its length.

Surfing on the waves of the microcosm

Researchers use model calculations to optimize work extraction from fluctuating environments, enabling the development of nanomachines that can efficiently transport nutrients and other molecules within cells. The study's findings have significant implications for understanding thermodynamics in the microscopic world.

SourceHeinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf·JournalNature Communications·DateDec 15, 2025

A platform of gold reveals the forces of nature’s invisible glue

A new platform allows researchers to study the forces that bind tiny objects together, revealing insights into self-assembly processes and fundamental forces in nature. The platform uses gold flakes in a salt solution, with light bouncing back and forth through nanometre-sized cavities to display colors.

SourceChalmers University of Technology·JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences·TypeExperimental study·DateOct 23, 2025

Rice scientists uncover quantum surprise: Matter mediates ultrastrong coupling between light particles

Researchers create 3D photonic-crystal cavity to study ultrastrong coupling between light and matter, enabling faster and more energy-efficient quantum computing and communication technologies. The study paves the way for hyperefficient quantum processors, high-speed data transmission and next-generation sensors.

SourceRice University·JournalNature Communications·TypeExperimental study·DateApr 17, 2025

Single-beam optical trap-based surface-enhanced raman scattering optofluidic molecular fingerprint spectroscopy detection system

Researchers developed a surface-enhanced Raman scattering optofluidic molecular fingerprint spectroscopy detection system based on a single-beam optical trap. The system aggregates metal nanoparticles to enhance Raman signals, achieving controllable amplification of molecular fingerprints for highly sensitive detection.

SourceCompuscript Ltd·JournalOpto-Electronic Advances·DateFeb 7, 2025

Quantum entanglement between electronic and motional states in cold-atom quantum simulator

The researchers have successfully demonstrated quantum entanglement between electronic and motional states in their ultrafast quantum simulator, generating a new quantum simulation method including repulsive force between particles. This achievement is expected to improve the fidelity of two-qubit gate operations and realize socially u...

SourceNational Institutes of Natural Sciences·JournalPhysical Review Letters·TypeExperimental study·DateSep 2, 2024

Novel application of optical tweezers: colorfully showing molecular energy transfer

Researchers at Osaka Metropolitan University have developed a novel technique to control Förster resonance energy transfer using optical tweezers. The method, which accelerates energy transfer by increasing laser intensity, offers a non-contact approach for microchemistry and quantum dot applications.

SourceOsaka Metropolitan University·JournalAdvanced Optical Materials·TypeExperimental study·DateJun 24, 2024

Rice research opens new arena to study quantum interactions

Researchers at Rice University have developed a new experimental technique that preserves quantum coherence in ultracold molecules for a significantly longer time. By using a specific wavelength of light, the 'magic trap' delays the onset of decoherence, allowing scientists to study fundamental questions about interacting quantum matter.

SourceRice University·JournalNature Physics·TypeExperimental study·DateJan 18, 2024

CRONT: Empowering optical tweezers with "biometric eyes"

Researchers developed CRISPR-powered optothermal nanotweezers (CRONT) that can trap and enrich bio-nanoparticles, including gold nanoparticles and DNA molecules. The technique achieves single molecule level SNP detection with ultra-low detection volume, making it suitable for point-of-care diagnosis and biophotonics.

New twist on optical tweezers

Scientists have created a method to keep targeted particles cool, allowing safe trapping of living cells in their native fluids. This advancement could help overcome problems with current laser light tweezers and enable targeted drug delivery applications.

SourceUniversity of Texas at Austin·JournalNature Communications·TypeExperimental study·DateNov 1, 2023

Multifunctional interface enables manipulation of light waves in free space

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a multifunctional interface between photonic integrated circuits and free space, allowing for simultaneous manipulation of multiple light beams. The device operates with high accuracy and reliability, enabling applications in quantum computing, sensing, imaging, energy, and more.

SourceSPIE--International Society for Optics and Photonics·JournalAdvanced Photonics Nexus·DateMay 24, 2023

“Hightech” materials from nature

A research team at Göttingen University has discovered that mobile and stationary cells have different mechanical properties due to their cytoskeleton. The study found that intermediate filaments, which are crucial for cell stability, exhibit metal-like plasticity when stretched, similar to non-biological materials.

SourceUniversity of Göttingen·JournalMatter·TypeObservational study·DateMay 22, 2023

Fishing for proteins: Scientists use new optical tweezer technology to study DNA repair

Researchers used C-trap technology to investigate how different DNA repair proteins identify and bind to their respective forms of damage. They found that some proteins arrived at the damage site together and departed together, while others showed surprising variability in their association and dissociation patterns. The study provides...

SourceUniversity of Pittsburgh·JournalNucleic Acids Research·TypeExperimental study·DateMar 1, 2023

Princeton researchers reveal microscopic quantum correlations of ultracold molecules

Princeton researchers have achieved a major breakthrough by microscopically studying molecular gases at a level never before achieved. The team cooled molecules to ultracold temperatures, observed individual molecules with high spatial resolution, and detected subtle quantum correlations, opening up new avenues for many-body physics re...

SourcePrinceton University·JournalNature·TypeExperimental study·DateFeb 1, 2023

How advanced optical tweezers revolutionized cell manipulation

Optical tweezers have evolved to trap, sort, transport, and enrich various biological particles with finer force strength and non-invasive nature. This enables applications in biology, pharmacology, and clinical research fields, offering a promising tool for understanding human life at the single-cell level.

SourceSpringer·JournalThe European Physical Journal Plus·DateOct 12, 2022

Breakthrough for the realization of ultrafast quantum computers: the world’s fastest 2-Qubit gate between two single atoms

Scientists have successfully implemented the world's fastest two-qubit gate in a quantum computer, achieving an impressive speed of 6.5 nanoseconds using cold atoms cooled to near absolute zero and optical tweezers. This breakthrough has significant implications for the development of ultrafast quantum computing hardware.

SourceNational Institutes of Natural Sciences·JournalNature Photonics·TypeExperimental study·DateAug 8, 2022

New optical tweezers put on the pressure to change color

Researchers at Osaka City University have developed a new technique for controlling the luminescence color of materials using optical tweezers and nanotextured black silicon. The system can change the color of a material in response to changes in light pressure, allowing for fully reversible remote control.

SourceOsaka City University·JournalAngewandte Chemie·TypeImaging analysis·DateFeb 28, 2022

When light loses symmetry, it can hold particles

Scientists at Huazhong University of Science and Technology have created a new type of fiber optical tweezers that can trap particles using transverse electromagnetic modes. This breakthrough enables the manipulation of single biomolecules like DNA and proteins, opening up new possibilities for bioparticle research.

SourceHigher Education Press·JournalFrontiers of Optoelectronics·TypeExperimental study·DateJan 26, 2022

High cell membrane tension constrains the spread of cancer

Research reveals that cancer cells have softer membranes than normal cells, but stiffening them can prevent abnormal changes in structure and motility. Stiffened breast cancer cells lost the ability to spread to the lungs in mouse experiments, suggesting a potential strategy for cancer treatments.

SourceKobe University·JournalNature Communications·TypeExperimental study·DateNov 8, 2021

Trapping nanoparticles with optical tweezers

Optical tweezers have been extended to trap nanoscale particles by exploiting a particular property of light diffraction at the interface between a glass and a liquid. The device uses 'Arago spots' and 'total internal reflection' to confine particles in a donut-shaped wave, enabling precise manipulation without physical contact.

SourceSpringer·JournalThe European Physical Journal E·DateDec 11, 2020

A remote control for everything small

Researchers at TU Wien have created a calculation method to determine the perfect wave form for manipulating small particles in complex environments. This allows for precise control over particles without direct physical contact, opening up new possibilities for biological research and applications.

SourceVienna University of Technology·JournalNature Photonics·DateNov 19, 2019