Optofluidic tunable manipulation of microparticles by integrating graded-index fiber taper with a microcavity

We propose and demonstrate optofluidic tunable manipulation of polystyrene microparticles based on the combination of a graded-index fiber (GIF) taper and a microcavity. The tunability on the manipulation length is experimentally explored by changing the balance between the optical force and the microfluidic flow force, as well as by tuning the focus of light emitting from the GIF taper via adjusting the length of an air microcavity. By optimizing the geometric shape of the GIF taper, as well as the flow rate and laser power, a manipulation length of 177 μm is achieved, more than 4 times longer than the state-of-the-art optical fiber tweezers. This method has advantages of high flexibility, ease of fabrication and use, integration with microfluidics and has the potential for optofluidic sensing applications.