Open AccessTemplate-stripped nanoaperture tweezer integrated with optical fiber
Author(s) -
Jamal M. Ehtaiba,
Reuven Gordon
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.26.009607
Subject(s) - optical tweezers , nanolithography , optics , numerical aperture , materials science , optical fiber , aperture (computer memory) , nanotechnology , fabrication , nanophotonics , beam divergence , finite difference time domain method , laser , optoelectronics , physics , laser beams , medicine , wavelength , alternative medicine , pathology , laser beam quality , acoustics
We demonstrate an optical trapping technique that integrates the light guiding of an optical fiber with the field localization of a nanoaperture in a gold film. A key innovation of our technique is to use template-stripping for easy planar fabrication without the need for nanofabrication on the tip itself. As a proof of principle, we demonstrate the trapping of 20 nm and 30 nm polystyrene nanoparticles in solution, as observed by a jump in the transmitted laser intensity through the aperture. We use the finite difference time domain technique to simulate this intensity jump with the addition of a nanoparticle in the aperture, showing reasonable agreement with the experimental data. This simple nano-aperture optical fiber tip eliminates the need for a microscope setup while allowing for trapping nanoparticles, so it is anticipated to have applications in biology (e.g. viruses), biophysics (e.g. protein interactions), physics (e.g. quantum emitters), and chemistry (e.g. colloidal particles).