Nanoscale electric field sensing using a levitated nano-resonator with net charge

The nanomechanical resonator based on a levitated particle exhibits unique advantages in the development of ultrasensitive electric field detectors. We demonstrate a three-dimensional, high-sensitivity electric field measurement technology using the optically levitated nanoparticle with known net charge. By scanning the relative position between nanoparticle and parallel electrodes, the three-dimensional electric field distribution with microscale resolution is obtained. The measured noise equivalent electric intensity with charges of 100e reaches the order of 1 μV·cm^(-1)·Hz^(-1/2)at 1.4 × 10^(-7) mbar. Linearity analysis near resonance frequency shows a measured linear range over 91 d B limited only by the maximum output voltage of the driving equipment. This work may provide an avenue for developing a high-sensitivity electric field sensor based on an optically levitated nano-resonator.

Yoctonewton force detection based on optically levitated oscillator

Optically levitated oscillators in high vacuum have excellent environmental isolation and low mass compared with conventional solid-state sensors,which makes them suitable for ultrasensitive force detection.The force resolution usually scales with the measurement bandwidth,which represents the ultimate detection capability of the system under ideal conditions if sufficient time is provided for measurement.However,considering the stability of a real system,a method based on the Allan variance is more reliable to evaluate the actual force detection performance.In this study,a levitated optomechanical system with a force detection sensitivity of 6.33±1.62 zN/Hz^(1/2)was demonstrated.And for the first time,the Allan variance was introduced to evaluate the system stability due to the force sensitivity fluctuations.The force detection resolution of 166.40±55.48 yN was reached at the optimal measurement time of 2751 s.The system demonstrated in this work has the best force detection performance in both sensitivity and resolution that have been reported so far for optically levitated particles.The reported high-sensitivity force detection system is an excellent candidate for the exploration of new physics such as fifth force searching,high-frequency gravitational waves detection,dark matter research and so on.

Actual Sensing Sensitivity and SNR Measurement of Optical Tweezers Based on Coulomb Force Input

Sensing sensitivity is the key performance of optical tweezers.By adjusting the frequency and magnitude of an applied Coulomb force as an input of optical tweezers,we directly measured the sensitivity and signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)of a system and indirectly calculated the actual noise magnitude.Combined with an output filter,the relationship between the SNR and bandwidths was studied.We established the simulation model of a system using Simulink and simulated the relationship between the SNR and magnitude of the input forces and filter bandwidths.In addition,we built an experimental system to determine the relationship between the SNR and the magnitude of the input forces and filter bandwidths.The actual minimum detectable force was measured as 1.8275×10^(-17)N at a 1Hz bandwidth.The experimental results were correlated with the simulation and theoretical results,confirming the effectiveness of the proposed method and demonstrating the high sensitivity of vacuum optical tweezers as mechanical sensors.We proposed a novel method of calibration and measurement of system sensing parameters by applying an actual force that was more direct and precise than the theoretical calculation method that requires accurate fitting parameters,such as the particle radius and density.This method can be employed to analyze the system noise and phase characteristics to confirm and improve the real performance of the system.

Displacement Calibration of Optical Tweezers With Gravitational Acceleration

In recent years,levitated particles of optical traps in vacuum have shown the enormous potential for precision sensor development and new physics exploration.However,the accuracy of the sensor is still hampered by the uncertainty of the calibration factor relating the detected signal to the absolute displacement of the trapped particle.In this paper,we suggest and experimentally demonstrate a novel calibration method for optical tweezers based on free-falling particles in vacuum,where the gravitational acceleration is introduced as an absolute reference.Our work provides a calibration protocol with a great certainty and traceability,which is significant in improving the accuracy of precision sensing based on levitated optomechanical systems.

Optomechanical force gradient sensing with levitated nanosphere pair

Guided by recent progress in ground state cooling and ultraweak force sensing in the optomechanical systems with optically levitated particles,we propose a novel quantum sensing protocol that can detect the gradient of a force field directly with extremely high sensitivity.The system consists of a pair of nanospheres levitated in the high vacuum environment with optical tweezers and an optical resonator.By positioning the two spheres suitably relative to the cavity,only the collective breathing mode of the sphere pair couples to the cavity field.This optomechanical coupling will transfer the information of force difference acting on the two sensors to cavity photons,which can then be detected directly at the output of the cavity.Given the optimal control of various technical noise sources,the sensitivity could reach 10^(-15)N m^(-1)/√HZ with a high spatial resolution of micron scale on a state-of-the-art experimental setup.The potential application of this protocol in searching for short range“new force”is analyzed.Compared with conventional searching protocols with a single levitated sphere,the method proposed here can increase the signal-to-noise ratio by more than one magnitude in a large searching parameter space.

Dynamic Analysis and Simulation of an Optically Levitated Rotating Ellipsoid Rotor in Liquid Medium

Optical trap,a circularly polarized laser beam can levitate and control the rotation of microspheres in liquid medium with high stiffness.Trapping force performs as confinement while the trapped particle can be analog to a liquid floated gyroscope with three degree-of-ffeedom.In this work,we analyzed the feasibility of applying optically levitated rotor in the system.We presented the dynamic analysis and simulation of an ellipsoid micron particle.The precession motion and nutation motion of a rotating ellipsoid probe particle in optical tweezers were performed.We also analyzed the attitude changes of an optically levitated ellipsoid when there was variation of the external torque caused by deviation of the incident light that was provided.Furthermore,the trail path of the rotational axis vertex and the stabilization process of a particle of different ellipticities were simulated.We compared the movement tendencies of particles of different shapes and analyzed the selection criteria of ellipsoid rotor.These analytical formulae and simulation results are applicable to the analysis of the rotational motion of particles in optical tweezers,especially to the future research of the gyroscope effect.

A review of optically induced rotation

The optical rotation technique arose in the 1990 s.Optical tweezer brought an ideal platform for research on the angular momentum of laser beams.For decades,the optical rotation technique has been widely applied in laboratory optical manipulation and the fields of biology and optofluidics.Recently,it has attracted much attention for its potential in the classical and quantum regimes.In this work,we review the progress of experiments and applications of optically induced rotation.First,we introduce the basic exploration of angular momentum.Then,we cover the development and application of optical rotation induced by orbital angular momentum,and the spin angular momentum is presented.Finally,we elaborate on recent applications of the optical rotation technique in high vacuum.As precise optical manipulation in a liquid medium enters its maturity,optical tweezers in high vacuum open a new path for the high-speed micro-rotor.