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Updated: May 21, 2026

Optical Trap Loading of Dielectric Microparticles In Air
Published on: February 5, 2017
Equilibrium orientations and positions of non-spherical particles in optical traps
Yongyin Cao1, Alexander B Stilgoe, Lixue Chen
1Department of Physics, School of Science, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China. yongyincao@gmail.com
Abstract:
Dynamic simulation is a powerful tool to observe the behavior of arbitrary shaped particles trapped in a focused laser beam. Here we develop a method to find equilibrium positions and orientations using dynamic simulation. This general method is applied to micro- and nano-cylinders as a demonstration of its predictive power. Orientation landscapes for particles trapped with beams of differing polarisation are presented. The torque efficiency of micro-cylinders at equilibrium in a plane is also calculated as a function of tilt angle. This systematic investigation elucidates in both the function and properties of micro- and nano-cylinders trapped in optical tweezers.
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