Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090027747 | HOLOGRAPHIC MICROSCOPY OF HOLOGRAPHICALLY TRAPPED THREE-DIMENSIONAL STRUCTURES - A method and system for performing three-dimensional holographic microscopy of an optically trapped structure. The method and system use an inverted optical microscope, a laser source which generates a trapping laser beam wherein the laser beam is focused by an objective lens into a plurality of optical traps. The method and system also use a collimated laser at an imaging wavelength to illuminate the structure created by the optical traps. Imaging light scattered by the optically tapped structure forms holograms that are imaged by a video camera and analyzed by optical formalisms to determine light field to reconstruct 3-D images for analysis and evaluation. | 01-29-2009 |
20090101807 | MANIPULATION OF OBJECTS IN POTENTIAL ENERGY LANDSCAPES - Holographic optical traps using the forces exerted by computer-generated holograms to trap, move and otherwise transform mesoscopically textured materials. The efficacy of the present invention is based upon the quality and nature of the diffractive optical element used to create the traps and dynamically use them. Further a landscape of potential energy sites can be created and used to manipulate, sort and process objects. | 04-23-2009 |
20090146050 | EXTENDED OPTICAL TRAPS BY SHAPE-PHASE HOLOGRAPHY - A method and system for establishing extended optical traps for commercial use. The method and system employs a diffractive optical element (DOE) to process a light beam wherein the DOE includes phase information and amplitude information to create the extended optical trap. Such extended traps can be line traps and can be further expanded to two and three dimensional configurations. | 06-11-2009 |
20090231651 | SYSTEM FOR APPLYING OPTICAL FORCES FROM PHASE GRADIENTS - A system and method for creating extended optical traps for applying optical forces to a material to be manipulated for a commercial application. The system and method include applying a hologram of appropriate characteristics to a beam of light wherein the hologram characteristics include a transverse optical component to apply optical forces transverse to an optical axis of the system. A shape phase component achieves this transverse optical component and also intensity gradient components can be applied via the hologram to provide programmable extended optical traps for a selectable commercial application. | 09-17-2009 |
20090238570 | TOPOLOGICALLY MULTIPLEXED OPTICAL DATA COMMUNICATION - Systems and methods for encoding information in the topology of superpositions of helical modes of light, and retrieving information from each of the superposed modes individually or in parallel. These methods can be applied to beams of light that already carry information through other channels, such as amplitude modulation or wavelength dispersive multiplexing, enabling such beams to be multiplexed and subsequently demultiplexed. The systems and methods of the present invention increase the number of data channels carried by a factor of the number of superposed helical modes. | 09-24-2009 |
20100032556 | SOLUTE CHARACTERIZATION BY OPTOELECTRONKINETIC POTENTIOMETRY IN AN INCLINED ARRAY OF OPTICAL TRAPS - A method and apparatus for selecting a specific fraction from a heterogeneous fluid-borne sample using optical gradient forces in a microfluidic or fluidic system are presented. Samples may range in size from a few nanometers to at least tens of micrometers, may be dispersed in any fluid medium, and may be sorted on the basis of size, shape, optical characteristics, charge, and other physical properties. The selection process involves passive transport through optical intensity field driven by flowing fluid, and so offers several advantages over competing techniques. These include continuous rather than batch-mode operation, continuous and dynamic tunability, operation over a wide range of samples, compactness, and low cost. | 02-11-2010 |
20100090180 | SELF-REPLICATING MATERIALS - The invention provides micron and sub-micron scale particles designed to recognize and selectively interact with each other by exploiting the recognition and specificity enabled by DNA-sequence-encoded coatings. Such materials possess sufficient information coded in their chemical and physical interactions to self assemble and self replicate. The invention further provides methods of using such materials to create self replicating and organizing materials. Replicated copies are permanently linked and then thermally detached, freeing them to act as templates for further growth. This new class of condensed matter systems, provides means to design and control the structure and function of materials and machines from the microscopic to life-size. In another aspect of the invention, depletion type forces and depletion zones can be utilized in the implementation of the self assembly and self replication of materials, including without limitation colloidal particles. The invention further provides novel means of synthesis and materials built by such synthesis, which may be used in a variety of applications, including microelectronics. | 04-15-2010 |
20100147456 | SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR HOLOGRAPHIC OPTICAL TRAP BONDING - A system and method for bonding and unbonding of small objects using small adhesive particles. The system and method includes the use of a plurality of optical tweezers to manipulate objects to be bonded and adhesive particles suspended in a fluid. The objects to be bonded (or unbonded) and the adhesive particles are positioned by lower power optical tweezers and then an intense bonding optical tweezer is activated to cause the adhesive to join the objects together (or used to unbond objects). | 06-17-2010 |
20100196004 | TOPOLOGICALLY MULTIPLEXED OPTICAL DATA COMMUNICATION - Systems and methods for encoding information in the topology of superpositions of helical modes of light, and retrieving information from each of the superposed modes individually or in parallel. These methods can be applied to beams of light that already carry information through other channels, such as amplitude modulation or wavelength dispersive multiplexing, enabling such beams to be multiplexed and subsequently demultiplexed. The systems and methods of the present invention increase the number of data channels carried by a factor of the number of superposed helical modes. | 08-05-2010 |
20100253762 | HOLOGRAPHIC MICROSCOPY OF HOLOGRAPHICALLY TRAPPED THREE-DIMENSIONAL NANOROD STRUCTURES - A method and system for performing three-dimensional holographic microscopy of an optically trapped one dimensional structure. The method and system use an inverted optical microscope, a laser source which generates a trapping laser beam wherein the laser beam is focused by an objective lens into a plurality of optical traps. The method and system also use a collimated laser at an imaging wavelength to illuminate the structure created by the optical traps. Imaging light scattered by the optically tapped structure forms normalized intensity holograms that are imaged by a video camera and analyzed by optical formalisms to determine light field to reconstruct 3-D images for analysis and evaluation. | 10-07-2010 |
20100288914 | VOLUMETRIC IMAGING OF HOLOGRAPHIC OPTICAL TRAPS - A method and system for manipulating object using a three dimensional optical trap configuration. By use of selected hologram on optical strap can be configured as a preselected three dimensional configuration for a variety of complex uses. The system can include various optical train components, such as partially transmissive mirrors and Keplerian telescope components to provide advantageously three dimensional optical traps. | 11-18-2010 |
20110043607 | TRACKING AND CHARACTERIZING PARTICLES WITH HOLOGRAPHIC VIDEO MICROSCOPY - In-line holography to create images of a specimen, such as one or more particles dispersed in a transparent medium. Analyzing these images with results from light scattering theory yields the particles' sizes with nanometer resolution, their refractive indexes to within one part in a thousand, and their three dimensional positions with nanometer resolution. This procedure can rapidly and directly characterize mechanical, optical and chemical properties of the specimen and its medium. | 02-24-2011 |
20110114831 | Holographic microfabrication and characterization system for soft matter and biological systems - A method and system for micromanipulation of objects of any shape. The method and system creates various forms of holographic optical traps for a variety of commercial purposes. Some alternate forms of traps include a dark form of optical traps, optical vortices with different helical winding numbers and optical traps with variable phase profiles imprinted thereon. | 05-19-2011 |
20110251072 | ASSEMBLY OF QUASICRYSTALLINE PHOTONIC HETEROSTRUCTURES - A method and system for assembling a quasicrystalline heterostructure. A plurality of particles is provided with desirable predetermined character. The particles are suspended in a medium, and holographic optical traps are used to position the particles in a way to achieve an arrangement which provides a desired property. | 10-13-2011 |
20110278442 | MANIPULATION OF OBJECTS IN POTENTIAL ENERGY LANDSCAPES - A method for manipulating a plurality of objects. The method includes the steps of providing a shaping source, applying the shaping source to create a spatially symmetric potential energy landscape, applying the potential energy landscape to a plurality of objects, thereby trapping at least a portion of the plurality of objects in the potential energy landscape, spatially moving the potential energy landscape to manipulate the plurality of objects; and extinguishing the potential energy landscape, thereby causing the plurality of objects to move freely when the potential energy landscape is extinguished. | 11-17-2011 |
20120057213 | Volumetric Imaging of a Holographic Optical Traps - A method and system for manipulating object using a three dimensional optical trap configuration. By use of selected hologram on optical strap can be configured as a preselected three dimensional configuration for a variety of complex uses. The system can include various optical train components, such as partially transmissive mirrors and Keplerian telescope components to provide advantageously three dimensional optical traps. | 03-08-2012 |
20120135535 | AUTOMATED REAL-TIME PARTICLE CHARACTERIZATION AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL VELOCIMETRY WITH HOLOGRAPHIC VIDEO MICROSCOPY - An in-line holographic microscope can be used to analyze on a frame-by-frame basis a video stream to track individual colloidal particles' three-dimensional motions. The system and method can provide real time nanometer resolution, and simultaneously measure particle sizes and refractive indexes. Through a combination of applying a combination of Lorenz-Mie analysis with selected hardware and software methods, this analysis can be carried out in near real time. An efficient particle identification methodology automates initial position estimation with sufficient accuracy to enable unattended holographic tracking and characterization. | 05-31-2012 |
20120223219 | EXTENDED AND KNOTTED OPTICAL TRAPS IN THREE DIMENSIONS - The present invention is directed toward a system and method for projecting holographic optical traps whose intensity maxima are extended along specified paths in three dimensions with specified amplitude and phase profiles along those paths. Specifying paths that constitute knotted loops and phase profiles that direct radiation pressure along the knotted paths yields optical traps that exert knotted force fields. Knotted optical force fields have uses for inducing motion along knotted paths, with applications including the generation of knotted electric current loops in plasmas. | 09-06-2012 |
20120273664 | Sorting Colloidal Particles Into Multiple Channels with Optical Forces: Prismatic Optical Fractionation - A method and system for controlled fractionation of particles. A sample having a plurality of particles of different size distributions. A uniform array for the preparing of optical traps having a selected array lattice constant. The plurality of particles for inputting the plurality of particles to the uniform array of optical traps at a driving direction angle and the plurality of particles separating along different directions based on variable particle attributes. | 11-01-2012 |
20120281263 | OPTICAL SOLENOID BEAMS - Optical solenoid beams, diffractionless solutions of the Helmholtz equation whose diffraction-limited in-plane intensity peak spirals around the optical axis, and whose wavefronts carry an independent helical pitch. The solenoid beams have the noteworthy property of being able to exert forces on illuminated objects that are directed opposite to the direction of the light's propagation. Optical solenoid beams therefore act as true tractor beams that are capable of transporting material back toward their source. | 11-08-2012 |
20130164884 | ASSEMBLY OF QUASICRYSTALLINE PHOTONIC HETEROSTRUCTURES - A method and system for assembling a quasicrystalline heterostructure. A plurality of particles is provided with desirable predetermined character. The particles are suspended in a medium, and holographic optical traps are used to position the particles in a way to achieve an arrangement which provides a desired property. | 06-27-2013 |
20130194646 | OPTICAL CONVEYORS - Optical conveyors providing motive force to objects. The optical conveyors are one-sided and are able to exert forces on illuminated objects that are directed opposite to the direction of the light's propagation. | 08-01-2013 |
20130278743 | METHOD AND SYSEM FOR MEASURING POROSITY OF PARTICLES - A method for analyzing porosity of a particle and a medium disposed in the porosity of the particle. A video-holographic microscope is provided to analyze interference patterns produced by providing a laser source to output a collimated beam, scattering the collimated beam off a particle and interacting with an unscattered beam to generate the interference pattern for analyzation to determine the refractive index of the particle and a medium disposed in the porosity of the particle to measure porosity and the medium. | 10-24-2013 |
20140333935 | TRACKING AND CHARACTERIZING PARTICLES WITH HOLOGRAPHIC VIDEO MICROSCOPY - In-line holography to create images of a specimen, such as one or more particles dispersed in a transparent medium. Analyzing these images with results from light scattering theory yields the particles' sizes with nanometer resolution, their refractive indexes to within one part in a thousand, and their three dimensional positions with nanometer resolution. This procedure can rapidly and directly characterize mechanical, optical and chemical properties of the specimen and its medium. | 11-13-2014 |
20150062587 | HOLOGRAPHIC MICROREFRACTOMETER - An in-line holographic microscope is used for measurements of micrometer-scale particles and associated suspending fluid medium containing the particles. The system yields heterodyne scattering patterns that may be interpreted with Lorenz-Mie theory to obtain precise time-resolved information on the refractive index of the suspending medium for determining chemical composition, concentrations and makeup thereof. This approach can perform spatially resolved refractometry with measurements on calibrated refractive index standards and monitor chemical concentration in a microfluidic channel. Using commercially available colloidal spheres as probe particles and a standard video camera for detection yields volumetric refractive index measurements with a resolution of 2×10 | 03-05-2015 |