© 2026 Aqora Quantum S.A.S.

Terms Privacy Legal Notice

arXiv:2607.23833

Position measurement of a levitated particle with vectorial light

Daniel Tandeitnik, Lucas Bianchi, Sebastian Gutierrez-Bernal, Joanna A. Zielińska, Paulo A. Maia Neto, Thiago Guerreiro

physics.opticsquant-phSubmitted Jul 26, 2026• Announced Jul 28, 2026• 0 citations

Abstract

We develop a fully vectorial, semiclassical scattering formalism for optically levitated dipolar scatterers, expressed within the angular spectrum representation and applicable to arbitrary trapping-field configurations as well as to high--numerical-aperture focusing. Within this framework, we introduce the information radiation pattern to characterize the angular distribution of position-dependent information and use a Richards--Wolf projection of the scattered field onto the local-oscillator mode to quantify the resulting mode-matching efficiency, yielding experimentally realistic forward- and backward-detection efficiencies. As a worked example, we apply the formalism to a radially polarized trapping beam and confirm that the axial recoil heating rate is reduced relative to a conventional linearly polarized Gaussian tweezer. The theoretical framework is implemented in LevitationToolbox, an open-source Python package intended to support the design and optimization of near-Heisenberg-limited levitated optomechanical experiments.

Related papers

Optimal Position Detection of an Optically Levitated Mie Particle

Wang, Long, Lei‐Ming Zhou, Tian, Yuan +4 more

We theoretically investigate the problem of position detection of an optically levitated Mie particle. The information radiation field (IRF) is proposed and defined to characterize the scattered light carrying complete information about the center-of-mass (c.m.) motion of the particle. Based on the IRF, we suggest an optimal detection scheme for the position of arbitrary particles. We calculate both the information losses of objective collection and mode-matching in levitated optomechanical experiments. Our results conclude that the backward detection scheme, using an incident Gaussian beam focused by a high numerical aperture lens, provides sufficient information to achieve the quantum ground state through cooling of the three-dimensional c.m. motion of the Mie particle.

arXiv:2408.15483•Aug 28, 2024•0 citations

Optimal position detection of an optically levitated Mie particle

Long Wang, Lei‐Ming Zhou, Yuan Tian +4 more

We theoretically investigate the problem of position detection of an optically levitated Mie particle. The information radiation field (IRF) is proposed and defined to characterize the scattered light carrying complete information about the center-of-mass (c.m.) motion of the particle. Based on the IRF, we suggest an optimal detection scheme for the position of arbitrary particles. We calculate both the information losses of objective collection and mode-matching in levitated optomechanical experiments. Our results conclude that the backward detection scheme, using an incident Gaussian beam focused by a high numerical aperture lens, provides sufficient information to achieve the quantum ground state through cooling of the three-dimensional c.m. motion of the Mie particle.

Journal of the Optical Society of America B•Jan 23, 2025•4 citations

Optimal orientation detection of an anisotropic dipolar scatterer

Felix Tebbenjohanns, Andrei Militaru, Andreas Norrman +3 more

The angular orientation of an anisotropic scatterer with cylindrical symmetry in a linearly polarized light field represents an optomechanical librator. Here, we propose and theoretically analyze an optimal measurement scheme for the two angular degrees of freedom of such a librator. The imprecision--back-action product of this scheme reaches the Heisenberg uncertainty limit. Furthermore, we propose and analyze a realistic measurement scheme and show that, in the absence of spinning motion around the symmetry axis, measurement-based ground-state cooling of the rotational degrees of freedom of an anisotropic point scatterer levitated in an optical trap is feasible.

arXiv:2109.08444•Physical Review A•May 5, 2022•12 citations

Levitated optomechanics with cylindrically polarized vortex beams

Felipe Almeida, Peter Barker

Optically levitated and cooled nanoparticles are a new quantum system whose application to the creation of non-classical states of motion and quantum limited sensing is fundamentally limited by recoil and bulk heating. We study the creation of stable 3D optical traps using optical cylindrically polarized vortex beams with radial and azimuthal polarization and show that a significant reduction in recoil heating by up to an order of magnitude can be achieved when compared with conventional single Gaussian beam tweezers. Additionally these beams allow trapping of larger particles outside the Rayleigh regime using both bright and dark tweezer trapping with reduced recoil heating. By changing the wavelength of the trapping laser, or the size of the particles, non-linear and repulsive potentials of interest for the creation of non-classical states of motion can also be created.

quant-pharXiv:2510.05384•Oct 8, 2025•0 citations

Optimal position detection of a dipolar scatterer in a focused field

Felix Tebbenjohanns, Martin Frimmer, Lukáš Novotný

The quest for bringing optically levitated systems into the quantum regime resulted in several sophisticated detection platforms. Here, tackling the same question from a different perspective, a scheme is derived for achieving the best possible (i.e., Heisenberg limit) position-detection efficiency for measuring a dipolar scatterer in a single-beam optical trap.

arXiv:1907.12838•Physical Review A•Oct 14, 2019•82 citations

Feedback cooling of a levitated nanoparticle in a radially polarized vector beam trap

Felipe Almeida, M. Rademacher, J. M. H. Gosling +1 more

We demonstrate optical levitation and feedback cooling of a silica nanoparticle (radius = 78~nm) trapped within a radial vector beam (RVB) in high vacuum. Radial vector beams, when focused by a high-NA lens, produce a smaller focal spot than conventional Gaussian beams, yielding tighter optical potentials and potentially reduced photon-recoil heating rates. A vortex wave plate was used to generate the RVB using an aspheric lens (NA = 0.77) to form the trap. Cold-damping feedback was used to cool the center of mass motion in the radial and axial trap directions to temperatures in the mK range. At higher temperatures and pressures, additional trap frequencies arising from the nonlinear RVB optical potential are observed. This demonstration is a step toward exploiting structured light for levitated quantum optomechanics where these traps can be used to suppress bulk and motional heating.

physics.opticsCross-listedarXiv:2609.31068•Sep 28, 2026•0 citations

We develop a fully vectorial, semiclassical scattering formalism for optically levitated dipolar scatterers, expressed within the angular spectrum representation and applicable to arbitrary trapping-field configurations as well as to high--numerical-aperture focusing. Within this framework, we introduce the information radiation pattern to characterize the angular distribution of position-dependent information and use a Richards--Wolf projection of the scattered field onto the local-oscillator mode to quantify the resulting mode-matching efficiency, yielding experimentally realistic forward- and backward-detection efficiencies. As a worked example, we apply the formalism to a radially polarized trapping beam and confirm that the axial recoil heating rate is reduced relative to a conventional linearly polarized Gaussian tweezer. The theoretical framework is implemented in LevitationToolbox, an open-source Python package intended to support the design and optimization of near-Heisenberg-limited levitated optomechanical experiments.

We theoretically investigate the problem of position detection of an optically levitated Mie particle. The information radiation field (IRF) is proposed and defined to characterize the scattered light carrying complete information about the center-of-mass (c.m.) motion of the particle. Based on the IRF, we suggest an optimal detection scheme for the position of arbitrary particles. We calculate both the information losses of objective collection and mode-matching in levitated optomechanical experiments. Our results conclude that the backward detection scheme, using an incident Gaussian beam focused by a high numerical aperture lens, provides sufficient information to achieve the quantum ground state through cooling of the three-dimensional c.m. motion of the Mie particle.

We theoretically investigate the problem of position detection of an optically levitated Mie particle. The information radiation field (IRF) is proposed and defined to characterize the scattered light carrying complete information about the center-of-mass (c.m.) motion of the particle. Based on the IRF, we suggest an optimal detection scheme for the position of arbitrary particles. We calculate both the information losses of objective collection and mode-matching in levitated optomechanical experiments. Our results conclude that the backward detection scheme, using an incident Gaussian beam focused by a high numerical aperture lens, provides sufficient information to achieve the quantum ground state through cooling of the three-dimensional c.m. motion of the Mie particle.

The angular orientation of an anisotropic scatterer with cylindrical symmetry in a linearly polarized light field represents an optomechanical librator. Here, we propose and theoretically analyze an optimal measurement scheme for the two angular degrees of freedom of such a librator. The imprecision--back-action product of this scheme reaches the Heisenberg uncertainty limit. Furthermore, we propose and analyze a realistic measurement scheme and show that, in the absence of spinning motion around the symmetry axis, measurement-based ground-state cooling of the rotational degrees of freedom of an anisotropic point scatterer levitated in an optical trap is feasible.

Optically levitated and cooled nanoparticles are a new quantum system whose application to the creation of non-classical states of motion and quantum limited sensing is fundamentally limited by recoil and bulk heating. We study the creation of stable 3D optical traps using optical cylindrically polarized vortex beams with radial and azimuthal polarization and show that a significant reduction in recoil heating by up to an order of magnitude can be achieved when compared with conventional single Gaussian beam tweezers. Additionally these beams allow trapping of larger particles outside the Rayleigh regime using both bright and dark tweezer trapping with reduced recoil heating. By changing the wavelength of the trapping laser, or the size of the particles, non-linear and repulsive potentials of interest for the creation of non-classical states of motion can also be created.

We demonstrate optical levitation and feedback cooling of a silica nanoparticle (radius = 78~nm) trapped within a radial vector beam (RVB) in high vacuum. Radial vector beams, when focused by a high-NA lens, produce a smaller focal spot than conventional Gaussian beams, yielding tighter optical potentials and potentially reduced photon-recoil heating rates. A vortex wave plate was used to generate the RVB using an aspheric lens (NA = 0.77) to form the trap. Cold-damping feedback was used to cool the center of mass motion in the radial and axial trap directions to temperatures in the mK range. At higher temperatures and pressures, additional trap frequencies arising from the nonlinear RVB optical potential are observed. This demonstration is a step toward exploiting structured light for levitated quantum optomechanics where these traps can be used to suppress bulk and motional heating.