ABSTRACT
In this study we report on the dynamic motion of a nano-sized colloidal particle captured in a polarized optical trap. A polystyrene sphere (300nm-diameter) that is electrically charged in solution was trapped with an optical tweezers formed by a linearly polarized TEM00 Gaussian beam, while the Brownian displacements of the trapped particle in x and y directions were measured so that the position of the particle's mass center can be mapped on the transverse plane and the corss-correlation between x and y displacements can be calculated. We found that the position's fluctuation of the trapped nano-sized particle in the parallel direction to the laser polarization is significantly larger than that in the normal direction, which suggests that there exists an additional random electric force parallel to the laser polarization direction exerting on the charged particle beside the known radiation forces on the dielectric particle. This asymmetry in dynamic motion is significant when the particle size is well less than the wavelength of the trapping laser. However, in an optical trap formed by a circularly polarized beam, this asymmetry in dynamic motion was observed to disappear. We present both the experimental results and a theoretical analysis.
ABSTRACT
We report on real-time Raman spectroscopic studies of optically trapped living cells and organelles using an inverted confocal laser-tweezers-Raman-spectroscopy (LTRS) system. The LTRS system was used to hold a single living cell in a physiological solution or to hold a functional organelle within a living cell and consequently measured its Raman spectra. We have measured the changes in Raman spectra of a trapped yeast cell as the function of the temperature of the bathing solution and studied the irreversible cell degeneration during the heat denaturation. In addition, we measured the in-vitro Raman spectra of the nuclei within living pine cells and B. sporeformer, Strep. salivarius, and E. coli bacteria suspended in solution and showed the possibility of using LTRS system as a sensor for rapid identification of microbes in a fluid.
ABSTRACT
We report on the development and testing of a compact laser tweezers Raman spectroscopy (LTRS) system. The system combines optical trapping and near-infrared Raman spectroscopy for manipulation and identification of single biological cells in solution. A low-power diode laser at 785 nm was used for both trapping and excitation for Raman spectroscopy of the suspended microscopic particles. The design of the LTRS system provides high sensitivity and permits real-time spectroscopic measurements of the biological sample. The system was calibrated by use of polystyrene microbeads and tested on living blood cells and on both living and dead yeast cells. As expected, different images and Raman spectra were observed for the different cells. The LTRS system may provide a valuable tool for the study of fundamental cellular processes and the diagnosis of cellular disorders.