[OPTICAL REVIEW Vol. 8, No. 3 (2001) 203-205]
Optical Force on a Micro-Sphere by the Laser Beam from a Lensed Optical Fiber Inserted at an Angle
Kozo TAGUCHI*, Masaru TANAKA and Masahiro IKEDA
Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering, Fukuyama University, Gakuen-cho, Fukuyama, Hiroshima, 729-0292 Japan
(Received November 28, 2000; Accepted March 16, 2001)
Optical forces acting on a micro-sphere were studied to corroborate the single-beam fiber optic trap. Transverse optical force acted to pull the micro-sphere back to the beam axis, but axial force always acted in the direction away from the optical fiber end because the laser beam from optical fiber could not be strongly focused. A stable two-dimensional optical trapping could be obtained by the weakly focused laser beam from the fiber end inserted at an angle.
Key words : optical fiber, laser beam, optical force, trap