High-Bandwidth 3-D Multitrap Actuation Technique for 6-DoF Real-Time Control of Optical Robots

Optical robots are microscale structures actuated using laser trapping techniques. However, the lack of robust and real-time three-dimensional (3-D) actuation techniques reduces most applications to planar space. We present here a new approach to generate and control several optical traps synchronously in 3-D with low latency and high bandwidth (up to 200 Hz). This time-shared technique uses only mirrors, hence, is aberration free. Simultaneous traps are used to actuate optical robots and provide 6-DoF telemanipulation. Experiments demonstrate the flexibility and dexterity of the implemented user control, paving the way to novel applications in microrobotics and biology.