Mechanical Manipulation of a Fiber‐Optical Microprobe Fabricated from Oxide Glasses with Magnetic Force Response

Oxide glasses incorporating large amounts of paramagnetic ion species are well known to exhibit magnetic functionality: through the specific choice of ion, such glasses may simultaneously exhibit magnetic force response and high or low magneto‐optical performance, adapted to target applications as optically active or passive component, respectively. Herein, glasses based on heavy doping of manganese, terbium, or thulium into aluminosilicate matrices are considered for magnetic force manipulation. Optical fiber fabricated from such glasses can be used as a magnetoresponsive probe, where an external magnetic field is used for precise, noncontact positioning, and distance manipulation at nanometer resolution. The ability to independently tailor force response and Faraday rotation efficiency enables a very broad range of applications, from active magnetic field sensing, optical switching and modulation to passive light delivery, near‐field optical sensing, force sensing, and mechanical manipulation.