Direct measurement of the nonconservative force field generated by optical tweezers

Details Direct measurement of the nonconservative force field generated by optical tweezers Direct measurement of the nonconservative force field generated by optical tweezers

2009-03-14

arxiv.org/abs/0903.2590v1

Physics

Condensed Matter

Soft Condensed Matter

Scientific paper

10.1016/j.bpj.2008.12.1430

The force field of optical tweezers is commonly assumed to be conservative, neglecting the complex action of the scattering force. Using a novel method that extracts local forces from trajectories of an optically trapped particle, we measure the three dimensional force field experienced by a Rayleigh particle with 10 nm spatial resolution and femtonewton precision in force. We find that the force field is nonconservative with the nonconservative component increasing radially away from the optical axis, in agreement with the Gaussian beam model of the optical trap. Together with thermal position fluctuations of the trapped particle, the presence of the nonconservative force can cause a complex flux of energy into the optical trap depending on the experimental conditions.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

No associations

Rating

Direct measurement of the nonconservative force field generated by optical tweezers does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Direct measurement of the nonconservative force field generated by optical tweezers, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Direct measurement of the nonconservative force field generated by optical tweezers will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-165655