Integrating optical tweezers with other manipulation platforms

Optical tweezers (OTs) has evolved from being an interesting research topic to a widely used tool, and it can be utilized to isolate, rotate, sort, and analyze single cells without contact allowed unraveling the heterogeneity present even in nominally homogeneous populations of cells. Optical traps can be easily combined with different analysis techniques, such as, imaging for detailed single cell inspection or can be exploited to probe single cell mechanical properties. Moreover, the synergy between optical forces and microfluidics is enabling the development of integrated devices where large amounts of cells can be analyzed without any damage to the sample. This chapter focuses on novel strategies and techniques for the manipulation of single cells and new routes for its implementation in integrated platforms.