Parallel trapping of multiwalled carbon nanotubes with optoelectronic tweezers

Here we report the use of optoelectronic tweezers and dynamic virtual electrodes to address multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with trap stiffness values of approximately 50 fN/mu m. Both high-speed translation (>200 mu m/s) of individual-MWCNTs and two-dimensional trapping of MWCNT ensembles are achieved using 100,000 times less optical power density than single beam laser tweezers. Modulating the virtual electrode's intensity enables tuning of the MWCNT ensemble's number density by an order of magnitude on the time scale of seconds promising a broad range of applications in MWCNT science and technology. (C) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3212725]