Controlling ghost traps in holographic optical tweezers

“Computer-generated holograms displayed by phase-modulating spatial light modulators have become a well- established tool for beam shaping purposes in holographic optical tweezers. Still, the generation of light intensity patterns with high spatial symmetry and simultaneously without interfering ghost traps is a challenge. We have implemented an iterative Fourier transform algorithm that is capable of controlling these ghost traps and demonstrate the benefit of this approach in the experiment.”