Optical tweezers have become the method of choice in single-molecule manipulation
studies. In this Primer, we first review the physical principles of optical tweezers and the …

Since the invention of optical tweezers, optical manipulation has advanced significantly in
scientific areas such as atomic physics, optics and biological science. Especially in the past …

Optical tweezers are tools made of light that enable contactless pushing, trapping, and
manipulation of objects, ranging from atoms to space light sails. Since the pioneering work …

Single-molecule force spectroscopy has emerged as a powerful tool to investigate the forces
and motions associated with biological molecules and enzymatic activity. The most common …

It has been over 20 years since the pioneering work of Arthur Ashkin, and in the intervening
years, the field of optical tweezers has grown tremendously. Optical tweezers are now being …

Single-molecule biophysics has transformed our understanding of biology, but also of the
physics of life. More exotic than simple soft matter, biomatter lives far from thermal …

Generally, an optical vortex lattice (OVL) is generated via the superposition of two specific
vortex beams. Thus far, OVL has been successfully employed to trap atoms via the dark …

In cells, RNA polymerase (RNAP) must transcribe supercoiled DNA, whose torsional state is
constantly changing, but how RNAP deals with DNA supercoiling remains elusive. We report …

Since the time of their introduction, optical tweezers (OTs) have grown to be a powerful tool
in the hands of biologists. OTs use highly focused laser light to guide, manipulate, or sort …

Single-molecule microscopy has evolved into the ultimate-sensitivity toolkit to study systems
from small molecules to living cells, with the prospect of revolutionizing the modern …