Optical trapping of colloidal particles and measurement of the defect line tension and colloidal forces in a thermotropic nematic liquid crystal

被引:109
作者
Smalyukh, II [1 ]
Kuzmin, AN
Kachynski, AV
Prasad, PN
Lavrentovich, OD
机构
[1] Kent State Univ, Inst Liquid Crystal, Kent, OH 44242 USA
[2] SUNY Buffalo, Inst Lasers Photon & Biophoton, Buffalo, NY 14260 USA
[3] Kent State Univ, Chem Phys Interdisciplinary Program, Kent, OH 44242 USA
基金
美国国家科学基金会;
关键词
D O I
10.1063/1.1849839
中图分类号
O59 [应用物理学];
学科分类号
摘要
We demonstrate optical trapping and manipulation of transparent microparticles suspended in a thermotropic nematic liquid crystal with low birefringence. We employ the particle manipulation to measure line tension of a topologically stable disclination line and to determine colloidal interaction of particles with perpendicular surface anchoring of the director. The three-dimensional director fields and positions of the particles manipulated by laser tweezers are visualized by fluorescence confocal polarizing microscopy. (C) 2005 American Institute of Physics.
引用
收藏
页码:021913 / 1
页数:3
相关论文
共 15 条
[11]   Identifying kinetic barriers to mechanical unfolding of the T-thermophila ribozyme [J].
Onoa, B ;
Dumont, S ;
Liphardt, J ;
Smith, SB ;
Tinoco, I ;
Bustamante, C .
SCIENCE, 2003, 299 (5614) :1892-1895
[12]   Novel colloidal interactions in anisotropic fluids [J].
Poulin, P ;
Stark, H ;
Lubensky, TC ;
Weitz, DA .
SCIENCE, 1997, 275 (5307) :1770-1773
[13]   Direct measurement of colloidal forces in an anisotropic solvent [J].
Poulin, P ;
Cabuil, V ;
Weitz, DA .
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS, 1997, 79 (24) :4862-4865
[14]  
Prasad P. N., 2003, INTRO BIOPHOTONICS
[15]   Three-dimensional imaging of orientational order by fluorescence confocal polarizing microscopy [J].
Smalyukh, II ;
Shiyanovskii, SV ;
Lavrentovich, OD .
CHEMICAL PHYSICS LETTERS, 2001, 336 (1-2) :88-96