Star Trek's "tractor" beam created in miniature by researchers

• Jan 26, 2013

• #1

Blord

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The scientists have created a way to attract things with light. It is possible on microscopic scale but it is a begin.

2013 | University of St Andrews

 

• Jan 27, 2013

• #2

Seoul_lasers

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This isn't really that new.
Optical tweezers effect...
Optical trapping has been around for some time now.
Problem with the tractor beam is that heat is transferred through absorption, so it will unlikely never be
used on a large scale.

 

• Jan 27, 2013

• #3

J

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Tractor Beams: Almost Real! - YouTube

This was uploaded on 15 May 2012

Should subscribe, they have a lot of cool videos

 

• Jan 28, 2013

• #4

bloompyle

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Is this similar to the effect that one can achieve by placing a felt tip marker infront of a red laser? If you do it quickly, sometimes a tiny orb (made red by the laser) will hover over the aperture for a bit.

 

• Jan 28, 2013

• #5

Seoul_lasers

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bloompyle said:

Is this similar to the effect that one can achieve by placing a felt tip marker infront of a red laser? If you do it quickly, sometimes a tiny orb (made red by the laser) will hover over the aperture for a bit.

Click to expand...

Yup.. That's optical trapping.

http://www.google.co.kr/url?sa=t&rc...aMfpNTVYMzSpFMg&bvm=bv.41524429,d.cGE&cad=rjt

Look at the link. It's a guide to how to use optical trapping in Biology and Biochem. Dates to 2006.
Tractor beams (optical trapping) has been around for years now..

 

Last edited: Jan 28, 2013