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Scientists Discover Way to Send Information into Black Holes Without Using Energy

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Scientists Create a Tiny Light-Controlled Robot Hand Smaller Than a Human Hair That Can Grab Objects With Incredible Precision

For decades, scientists have used light as a tool to control and move extremely tiny objects. One of the most powerful examples of this technology is the optical tweezer — a technique that uses highly focused laser beams to trap and manipulate microscopic particles without touching them. It has helped researchers study everything from individual molecules to living cells.

However, despite its incredible precision, optical tweezers have always faced one major limitation: they are extremely weak. The amount of force they can produce is so small that they can only handle lightweight, transparent, and regularly shaped objects. Now, researchers have developed a new technology that could completely change the way scientists manipulate objects at the microscopic scale.

A team led by Dong Wu at Anhui University, China, has created a miniature mechanical gripper controlled by light signals traveling through an optical fiber. The research, published in Nature, combines the accuracy of optical technology with the strength of mechanical gripping systems.

The result is a tiny robotic hand that can pick up, move, and release microscopic objects with much greater force and control than traditional optical tweezers.

The Problem With Optical Tweezers

Optical tweezers work by focusing a laser beam into a very small point. The concentrated light creates a region where tiny objects are naturally pulled and trapped. Because there is no physical contact, researchers can move delicate materials without damaging them.

This technology has transformed many areas of science, especially biology and physics. Scientists can manipulate individual molecules, viruses, and cells with remarkable accuracy.

However, the force generated by optical tweezers is extremely small. It is usually measured in piconewtons — a unit of force about one trillion times smaller than a newton. Because of this limitation, optical tweezers struggle with objects that are larger, heavier, opaque, or have irregular shapes.

A tiny piece of metal, a rough particle, or a complex structure may simply be too difficult to control using only light.

The new optical fiber gripper was designed to overcome this challenge.

A Tiny Robot Inspired by Biology

The newly developed device, called an optical fiber gripper (OFG), measures only 38 × 38 × 61 micrometers. To understand its size, a human hair is usually around 70 micrometers thick, meaning this tiny gripper is small enough to fit within the width of a single hair.

Researchers created the device directly on the tip of a commercial optical fiber using an advanced microscopic 3D printing method called two-photon polymerization.

The design was inspired by nature. Just like living organisms use nerves, muscles, and skeletons to create movement, this microscopic device uses three similar components.

The optical fiber acts like a nerve, carrying signals in the form of light. A special hydrogel containing silver nanoparticles works like a muscle. The rigid polymer claws act as the skeleton, providing structure and movement.

When near-infrared laser light travels through the optical fiber and reaches the silver nanoparticles, the particles absorb the energy and generate heat. This heat causes the hydrogel to contract, which makes the tiny claws open.

When the light is turned off, the hydrogel relaxes and the claws close again, allowing the device to grip objects.

This simple but powerful design allows researchers to control the tiny mechanical hand using only light.

Stronger Than Traditional Light-Based Tools

The performance of the new gripper surprised researchers. It can respond in just 77 milliseconds and open and close up to five times every second.

More importantly, it produces forces measured in micronewtons — more than ten times stronger than previous fiber-based optical manipulation systems.

This increase in strength allows the device to handle objects that were previously impossible for optical tweezers to control.

In experiments, the gripper successfully picked up different materials, including alumina spheres, silicon carbide fragments, and even copper wires measuring 20 centimeters long.

The researchers also demonstrated that the device could safely grab, move, and release individual human cancer cells without harming them.

This ability is especially important because many biological experiments require extremely gentle handling of cells.

Building Machines at the Microscopic Scale

One of the most impressive demonstrations was the use of the gripper to assemble tiny mechanical structures.

Researchers used the device to place and organize miniature components, including bearings and gear systems, with micrometer-level precision.

This shows that the technology could eventually help scientists build machines that are too small for traditional manufacturing methods.

Because the gripper itself is incredibly small, it can also reach spaces where normal tools cannot. The device can enter channels narrower than 300 micrometers and even operate inside extracted animal tissues.

This opens possibilities for applications in fields such as medical science, biotechnology, and advanced manufacturing.

The Future of Microscopic Robotics

The development of this light-controlled mechanical gripper represents an important step toward a new generation of microscopic robots.

In the future, similar devices could help researchers perform highly precise operations inside living systems, assist in minimally invasive surgeries, study individual cells, and construct tiny machines with complex structures.

Unlike traditional tools that rely on physical movement from outside, this technology uses light as a remote control system, allowing scientists to manipulate objects in difficult environments with incredible accuracy.

A tiny robotic hand controlled by light may seem like something from science fiction, but this research shows that the future of microscopic engineering is quickly becoming reality.

By combining the power of optics, materials science, and miniature robotics, scientists are creating tools that could reshape medicine, manufacturing, and our understanding of the microscopic world.

References: (1) Pan, D., Liang, K., Xin, C. et al. Optical fibre gripper for high-performance 3D micromanipulation. Nature (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-026-10673-7 (2) Leander Siegle et al, Light-controlled microgripper punches above its weight, Nature (2026). DOI: 10.1038/d41586-026-01703-5

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