Programmable Multimodal Optothermal Manipulation of Synthetic Particles and Biological Cells

Optical manipulation of tiny objects has benefited many research areas ranging from physics to biology to micro/nanorobotics. However, limited manipulation modes, intense lasers with complex optics, and applicability to limited materials and geometries of objects restrict the broader uses of conventional optical tweezers. Herein, we develop an optothermal platform that enables the versatile manipulation of synthetic micro/nanoparticles and live cells using an ultralow-power laser beam and a simple optical setup. Five working modes (i.e., printing, tweezing, rotating, rolling, and shooting) have been achieved and can be switched on demand through computer programming. By incorporating a feedback control system into the platform, we realize programmable multimodal control of micro/nanoparticles, enabling autonomous micro/nanorobots in complex environments. Moreover, we demonstrate in situ three-dimensional single-cell surface characterizations through the multimodal optothermal manipulation of live cells. This programmable multimodal optothermal platform will contribute to diverse fundamental studies and applications in cellular biology, nanotechnology, robotics, and photonics.