Optical Trapping and Manipulation of Viruses and Bacteria

Optical trapping and manipulation of viruses and bacteria by laser radiation pressure were demonstrated with single-beam gradient traps. Individual tobacco mosaic viruses and dense oriented arrays of viruses were trapped in aqueous solution with no apparent damage using approximately 120 milliwatts of argon laser power. Trapping and manipulation of single live motile bacteria and Escherichia coli bacteria were also demonstrated in a high-resolution microscope at powers of a few milliwatts.