Digital virus manipulation chip with a large array of all-dielectric nanocavities

Abstract Spatial manipulation of a precise number of viruses for host cell infection is essential for the study of virus pathogenesis and evolution. Albeit optical tweezers have been advanced to the atomic level via optical cooling, it remains a formidable challenge to efficiently trap and move viruses in an aqueous environment, being restricted by insufficient strength of optical forces and a lack of precise spatial manipulation techniques. Here, we demonstrate giant optical forces produced by the enhancement of light in engineered arrays of nanocavities for trapping and digitally moving viruses down to 40 nm in size. By employing the virus hopping and flexibility of moving the laser position, we demonstrate a digital virus manipulation chip with a large trapping area, enabling single or massive virus transporting, positioning, and concentrating. Our work paves the way to efficient and precise manipulation of either single viruses or their massive ensembles, opening a wide range of novel opportunities for virus pathogenesis, virus diagnostics, vaccine, and antiviral drug development, being also important to tackle the current COVID-19 outbreaks.