New Optical Micro-manipulator and Micro-rotator

描述（申请人提供）：单微纳米粒子的无创操作是基础生物学研究的重要工具。它允许用生化标签处理的细胞、细胞成分和合成标记颗粒被收集、分离、浓缩和运输，而不会损坏物体本身。在各种非侵入性操作机制中，除了捕获和移动生物细胞外，一个理想的操作机制是能够控制生物细胞的方向。这种能力为构建结构化生物材料在构建生物膜和人体组织工程中的潜在应用打开了大门。在本提案中，我们提出了一种利用光的偏振进行光学操纵和生物细胞旋转的新方法。除了通过扫描光束实现灵活的操作外，与传统的光镊相比，该方法有望实现精细的方向控制和低光强要求。该系统的一个关键元件是极化控制器。因此，除了对所提出的方法进行概念验证外，我们还计划利用MEMS（微机电系统）技术制造微偏振控制器，作为迈向微仪器仪表的第一步。与商用偏振控制器相比，微偏振控制器有望实现微秒级的响应时间，并且占用的体积要小得多。在为期两年的R21计划中，我们期望实现以下具体目标：1)对所提出的具有生物细胞的光学微机械臂和微旋转器进行建模和仿真。2)采用不对称微/纳米粒子对所提出的方法进行概念验证。3) MEMS偏振控制器的设计、制作和测试。该计划的成功将导致一个持续的研究计划，其中光学操纵和旋转的最终系统将被建立，以及特定的生物应用，如组织工程，将被研究。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Non-invasive manipulation of single micro- and nano-sized particles is an important tool for basic biological research. It allows cells, cellular components, and synthetic marker particles treated with biochemical tags to be collected, separated, concentrated, and transported without damage to the objects themselves. Among various non-invasive manipulation mechanisms, a desirable one is the ability to control the orientation of the biological cells, in addition to trapping and moving them. Such capability opens the door to building structured biomaterials for potential applications in constructing biofilms and human tissue engineering. In this proposal, we propose a new approach for optical manipulation and rotation of biological cells that utilizes polarization of light. In addition to flexible manipulation by scanning of the optical beam, the proposed approach is expected to achieve fine orientation control and low optical-intensity requirement compared to conventional optical tweezers. One critical element in the proposed system is the polarization controller. Therefore, in addition to proof-of-concept demonstration for the proposed method, we also plan to fabricate a micro-polarization controller by MEMS (Micro-electro-mechanical system) technology as the first step towards micro-instrumentation. The micro-polarization controller is expected to achieve micro-second response time and occupies substantially smaller volume compared to commercial polarization controllers. In the proposed two-year R21 program, we expect to achieve the following specific aims: 1) Modeling and simulation for the proposed optical micro-manipulator and micro-rotator with biological cells. 2) Proof-of concept demonstration of the proposed approach with asymmetrical micro/nano particles. 3) Design, fabrication, and testing of the MEMS polarization controller. The success of the proposed program will lead to a continuing research program, where the final system for optical manipulation and rotation will be built, and specific biological applications, such as tissue engineering, will be studied.