Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 29, 2026

Safe Experimentation in Optical Levitation of Charged Droplets Using Remote Labs
Published on: January 10, 2019
Highly Flexible and Ultraprecise Manipulation of Light-Levitated Femtoliter/Picoliter Droplets
Long Jiao1,2, Rong Chen1,2, Xun Zhu1,2
1Key Laboratory of Low-Grade Energy Utilization Technologies and Systems , Chongqing University , Ministry of Education, Chongqing 400030 , China.
Abstract:
Ultraprecise manipulation of the droplets at the microscale is a promising paradigm for broad implications in reagent transport and element analysis, but the existing strategies still suffer from cross-contamination or the miscellaneous auxiliaries. Inspired by the levitation, we develop a method for excellently manipulating levitated femtoliter/picoliter droplets by a single focused laser. We show that the unique light-induced vapor flow in association with the interface morphology is responsible for creation and manipulation of levitated droplets. In particular, we demonstrate that the levitated droplets formed by this light method show extraordinary motility. The highly accurate two-dimensional labyrinth movement of the levitated droplets with designed trajectories above the free surface is easily realized by scanning the light. These results demonstrate that a single focused light can function as an "optical baton" to enable us to construct a wide variety of the long-sought precise manipulation systems for bioassays, pharmacy, and chemosynthesis.
Related Concept Videos
Manipulation and Analysis
Light Acquisition
Light as Energy
Photons
A photon is a discrete electromagnetic particle or bundle of energy. Photons are characterized by their frequency, wavelength, and amplitude, similar to the properties of a wave. Waves with higher frequencies transmit more energy and have shorter wavelengths than longer wavelengths that transmit...
The Wave Nature of Light
¹H NMR of Conformationally Flexible Molecules: Temporal Resolution
Photoreceptors and Plant Responses to Light

