On the Brownian motion of a colloid trapped in optical tweezers: Experiments and simulations
Article
Overview
Research
Identity
Additional Document Info
View All
Overview
abstract
Editor%27s Note: Optical tweezers are fascinating tools to manipulate micrometer-size particles, such as cells or colloids, via the confining potential of a laser. This paper shows how this external potential hinders the Brownian motion of a colloid. It presents several usual theoretical approaches, including the Langevin equation, that one could use in class, as well as the Brownian dynamics simulations one can run to predict the trajectories of the confined colloid. It also details some experiments that would allow undergraduate students in a statistical physics course to measure such an effect.
