Browsing: Optical Tweezers

Optical tweezers are a scientific tool that uses highly focused laser beams to manipulate microscopic particles, such as cells, molecules, or even individual atoms, without physical contact. Developed in the 1980s, this technology works by exploiting the radiation pressure of light to trap and move particles with great precision. The light’s electric field exerts forces on the dielectric objects, allowing researchers to control the position of these small particles in three dimensions. Optical tweezers have become a valuable tool in fields like biophysics, molecular biology, and nanotechnology, enabling scientists to study biological processes, measure molecular interactions, and explore the mechanics of biological systems at the microscopic level. The invention of optical tweezers earned physicist Arthur Ashkin a Nobel Prize in Physics in 2018.