'Optical tweezers,' the technology behind Tel Aviv University's Holographic Optical Tweezers (HOTs), could form the basis for tomorrow's ultra-fast, light-powered communication devices and quantum computers, according to Dr. Yael Roichman of the university's School of Chemistry.
Dr. Roichman is currently using these tweezers to build nano structures that control beams of light, aiding in the development of anything from optical microscopes to light-fuelled computer technology.
HOTS are a new family of optical tools that use a strongly-focused light beam to trap, manipulate and transform small amounts of matter. First proposed as a scientific theory in 1986 and prototyped by a University of Chicago team in 1997, holographic optical tweezers have been lauded as indispensible for researching cutting-edge ideas in physics, chemistry, and biology."
