Optical trapping and binding, while effective for small particle clusters, are inherently unstable for larger clusters due to non-Hermitian nature of optical forces. The study reveals that clusters with 10 or more particles exhibit prevalent unstable complex eigenvalues, a consequence of energy pumping from light exceeding the system's capacity. This instability is shown to be inevitable in the many-particle limit. The presence of ambient damping, as in fluid environments, is crucial for maintaining stability in experimentally observed large optically bound clusters.
Publisher
Nature Communications
Published On
Nov 15, 2021
Authors
Xiao Li, Yineng Liu, Zhifang Lin, Jack Ng, C. T. Chan
Tags
optical trapping
particle clusters
stability
non-Hermitian forces
ambient damping
energy pumping
complex eigenvalues
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