Investigations of Flow and Particle Clustering Around Optically Trapped Rotating Nanorods
Typ
Examensarbete för masterexamen
Program
Publicerad
2020
Författare
Giesselmann, Niels
Modellbyggare
Tidskriftstitel
ISSN
Volymtitel
Utgivare
Sammanfattning
The investigation and development of nanomachines is a topic that is widely researched,
as it promises applications in fields like physics, biology or medicine. A
recent development of this research are light-driven rotary motors, consisting of
optically trapped gold nanorods. These rods are brought to rotate by the use of
circularly polarized light, making use of their plasmonic characteristics. It is now of
interest to better understand the effect that these nanorotors have on their environment.
In this context, this work explores the clustering of fluorescent nanospheres
around an optically trapped, rotating nanorod by the means of a combination of
dark-field and fluorescence microscopy. The work also discusses an attempt to track
particles in order to map the microfluidic flow around the trapped nanorod. By
observing the changes in brightness that occur when a particle enters this cluster,
it was possible to show that the rotation of a nanorod can induce and amplify the
clustering of these particles around it. Furthermore, the results suggest that higher
laser powers also support stronger clustering.
Beskrivning
Ämne/nyckelord
optical trap , LSPR , fluorescence , particle tracking , nanophotonics , nanorod , nanorotor