Optical trapping of rare earth-doped nanorods using an optical fiber tweezers approach (Conference Presentation)

NaYF4:(Er,Yb,Gd) nanorods of different size were trapped using our original optical tweezers consisting of two fiber tips facing each other. Trapping properties were found to depended drastically on the actual particle size. Small rods were efficiently trapped whereas long rods were strongly attracted by the fiber tips and their stable trapping position was situated at the apex of one single fiber tip. In the case of the long particles the trapped particle modified the fiber tip emission properties and trapping of a second nanorod at distances of some microns from the first one is observed. These experimental results will be explained by numerical simulations using the exact Maxwell Stress Tensor approach.