Optical trapping is the craft of manipulating objects with light. Decades after its first inception in 1970, the technique has become a powerful tool for ultracold‐atom physics and manipulation of micron‐sized particles. Yet, optical trapping of objects at the intermediate—nanoscale—range is still beyond full grasp. This matters because the nanometric realm is where several promising advances, from mastering single‐molecule experiments in biology, to fabricating hybrid devices for nanoelectronics and photonics, as well as testing fundamental quantum phenomena in optomechanics, are anticipated to produce impactful breakthroughs. After a comprehensive, theoretical introduction to the phenomenon of optical trapping, this review delves into assessing the current state‐of‐the‐art for optical manipulation of objects at the nanoscale. Emphasis is put on presenting the challenges that coalesced into driving the field to its current development, as well as discussing the outstanding barriers, which might lead to future advancements in the field.

中文翻译：

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纳米级光学陷印：综述

光学陷波是用光操纵物体的工艺。该技术自1970年首次诞生以来已有数十年历史，已成为超冷原子物理学和微米级粒子操纵的强大工具。然而，在中间（纳米尺度）范围内对物体的光捕获仍然无法完全掌握。这很重要，因为从掌握生物学的单分子实验到制造纳米电子学和光子学的混合器件以及测试光机械学中的基本量子现象，纳米级领域有望取得重大突破。在对光陷阱现象进行了全面的理论介绍之后，本篇综述深入探讨了对纳米级物体进行光学操作的最新技术。