TY - JOUR

T1 - Completely non-invasive cell manipulation in lens-integrated microfluidic devices by single-fiber optical tweezers

AU - Jiang, Chunlei

AU - Wang, Yunkai

AU - Dong, Taiji

AU - Li, Dong

AU - Yan, Bing

AU - Chen, Peng

AU - Shao, Keyong

AU - Wang, Xiufang

AU - Wang, Zengbo (James )

PY - 2023/4/12

Y1 - 2023/4/12

N2 - In a fiber-based optical tweezer system, it is a common practice to insert the fiber probe into the sample solution to perform the tweezer function. Such a configuration of the fiber probe may lead to unwanted contamination and/or damage to the sample system and is thus potentially invasive. Here, we propose a completely non-invasive method for cell manipulation by combining a microcapillary microfluidic device and an optical fiber tweezer. We demonstrate that Chlorella cells inside the microcapillary channel can be successfully trapped and manipulated by an optical fiber probe located outside of the microcapillary, thus making the process completely non-invasive. The fiber does not even invade the sample solution. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such a method. The speed of stable manipulation can reach the 7 µm/s scale. We found that the curved walls of the microcapillaries worked like a lens, which helped to boost the light focusing and trapping efficiency. Numerical simulation of optical forces under medium settings reveals that the optical forces can be enhanced by up to 1.44 times, and the optical forces can change direction under certain conditions.

AB - In a fiber-based optical tweezer system, it is a common practice to insert the fiber probe into the sample solution to perform the tweezer function. Such a configuration of the fiber probe may lead to unwanted contamination and/or damage to the sample system and is thus potentially invasive. Here, we propose a completely non-invasive method for cell manipulation by combining a microcapillary microfluidic device and an optical fiber tweezer. We demonstrate that Chlorella cells inside the microcapillary channel can be successfully trapped and manipulated by an optical fiber probe located outside of the microcapillary, thus making the process completely non-invasive. The fiber does not even invade the sample solution. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such a method. The speed of stable manipulation can reach the 7 µm/s scale. We found that the curved walls of the microcapillaries worked like a lens, which helped to boost the light focusing and trapping efficiency. Numerical simulation of optical forces under medium settings reveals that the optical forces can be enhanced by up to 1.44 times, and the optical forces can change direction under certain conditions.

U2 - 10.1364/OL.486264

DO - 10.1364/OL.486264

M3 - Article

VL - 48

SP - 2130

EP - 2133

JO - Optics Letters

JF - Optics Letters

SN - 0146-9592

IS - 8

ER -