Simulations of optical lift

Stephen H. Simpson; Grover A. Swartzlander Jr.; Simon Hanna

doi:10.1117/12.893782

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9 September 2011 Simulations of optical lift

Stephen H. Simpson, Grover A. Swartzlander Jr., Simon Hanna

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Proceedings Volume 8097, Optical Trapping and Optical Micromanipulation VIII; 809718 (2011) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.893782
Event: SPIE NanoScience + Engineering, 2011, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

In a recent article [Swartzlander et al. Nature Photonics, 5, 4851 (2010)], the optical analogue of conventional, aerodynamic lift was experimentally demonstrated. When exposed to quasi-plane wave illumination, a dielectric hemicylinder rotates into a stable configuration in which its cylindrical axis is perpendicular to the direction of propagation and its flat surface angled to it. In this configuration the body forces experienced by the particle contain a component perpendicular to the momentum flux of the incident field. This phenomenon can be meaningfully termed "optical lift", and the hemicylinder acts as a "light foil". Here, we present rigorous, full wave vector simulations of this effect for light foils of varying dimensions and composition. We investigate the general form of the forces and torques experienced by light foils, as a function of their orientation. The influence of the linear dimensions and the refractive indices of the hemicylinders is also investigated.

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Stephen H. Simpson, Grover A. Swartzlander Jr., and Simon Hanna "Simulations of optical lift", Proc. SPIE 8097, Optical Trapping and Optical Micromanipulation VIII, 809718 (9 September 2011); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.893782

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