Optical Nanoprinting of Colloidal Particles and Functional Structures

Recent advances in chemical sciences have enabled the tailorable synthesis of colloidal particles with variable composition, size, shape, and properties. Building superstructures with colloidal particles as building blocks is appealing for the fabrication of functional metamaterials and nanodevices. Optical nanoprinting provides a versatile platform to print various particles into arbitrary configurations with nanometric precision. In this review, we summarize recent progress in optical nanoprinting of colloidal particles and its related applications. Diverse techniques based on different physical mechanisms, including optical forces, light controlled electric fields, optothermal effects, laser-directed thermocapillary flows, and photochemical reactions, are discussed in detail. With its flexible and versatile capabilities, optical nanoprinting will find promising applications in numerous fields such as nanophotonics, energy, microelectronics, and nanomedicine.