Optical bottles: A quantitative analysis of optically confined nanoparticle ensembles in suspension

We present a novel method, an optical bottle, that uses a focused laser beam to trap and a second laser to analyze optically confined multiple nanoparticles. A theoretical framework based on the mechanical equilibrium of the optical radiation pressure produced by the focused laser beam and the osmotic pressure produced by the enriched particle concentration in the optical trap is developed for analyzing the ensemble behavior of the optically confined nanoparticles. Experiments were conducted for fluorescently labeled polystyrene nanospheres and unilamellar phospholipid vesicles to determine the optical trapping energy of individual particles as well as the osmotic compressibility of the colloids. The new method is not limited by the particle concentration and is relatively easy to implement.