Fractionation of polydisperse colloid with acousto-optically generated potential energy landscapes

The motion of colloidal particles on a periodic optical potential energy landscape in the presence of an external driving force may result in particle separation. In contrast to recent methods of holographic or interferometric generation of such landscapes, we use an acousto-optic deflector to create two-dimensional landscapes. We present what is believed to be the first experimental realization of fractionation with simultaneous sorting of four different sizes of colloidal microparticle into laterally separated parallel laminar streams. (c) 2007 Optical Society of America.