Viscoelastic dynamics of nanoparticles optically trapped in a moving fringe pattern in an air-filled hollow-core fiber

We report optical trapping and transport of nanoparticles in a moving interference pattern in hollow-core photonic crystal fiber at atmospheric pressure, when competition between trapping and drag forces causes the particle velocity to oscillate as it is momentarily captured and accelerated by each passing fringe, followed by release and deceleration by viscous forces. As a result, the average particle velocity is lower than the fringe velocity. We refer to this phenomenon as “drag-trapping.” The much higher trapping forces in air compared to liquids (when the dynamics are dominated by stochastic Brownian motion) allow us to develop a deterministic analytical model that quantitatively captures the measured behavior. Additional control is possible by introducing an imbalance in the backward and forward powers. The high precision of this new technique makes it of interest for example in characterizing nanoparticles, exploring viscous drag forces in different gases and liquids, and temperature sensing.