Laser tweezers used to develop microscopic components for miniature devices

Engineers have shown how laser tweezers can be used to manufacture miniaturised components for machines measuring only a few millimetres in diameter.

A team from the Applied Laser Technologies lab at the Ruhr-Universitat Bochum have been working on microscopic components that can be assembled with the aid of laser beams to form larger structures.

These optical tweezers feature arms that are made up of strongly-focused light. With the aid of this technology, the team has been able to manipulate objects in dimensions of between 0.5 and 20 micrometres.

It has already been established that this technology can be used to connect components together like microscopic jigsaw puzzles pieces, which stick together because of their shape.

Engineer Sarah Ksouri said: "It is conceivable that such modules could be used to build micro-robots. Such systems could be used for minimal invasive surgery."

Methods are also being developed to combine two-photon polymerisation and optical tweezer techniques, allowing polymer structures to be imbued with a specific function, such as magnetic or electrically conducting properties.