REAL LIFE NEWS: MORE TRACTOR BEAM NEWS
by Hazed
Real life continues to imitate science fiction with further developments in the world of tractor beams. Physicists have built a laser tractor beam which can be used to push or pull tiny particles.
It has so far moved particles measuring one fifth of a millimetre in diameter for a distance of up to 20cm. This increases the distance from previous experiments by about 100 times.
The beam uses a hollow laser beam that is bright around the edges and dark in its centre, and can be used to repel and attract objects.
Scientists from the Australian National University explained, “Because lasers retain their beam quality for such long distances, this could work over metres. Our lab just was not big enough to show it.”
While it still can’t move large objects such as cargo or ships about, it’s a step in the right direction. Even at this level it could have applications in controlling atmospheric pollution or retrieving tiny, delicate or dangerous particles for sampling.
Source: http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/oct/20/optical-tractor-beam-laser-physicists
