  The control of levitated nano- and micro-objects in vacuum is of considerable
interest, capitalizing on the scientific achievements in the fields of atomic
physics, control theory and optomechanics. The ability to couple the motion of
levitated systems to internal degrees of freedom, as well as to external forces
and systems, provides opportunities for science and technology. Attractive
research directions, ranging from fundamental quantum physics to commercial
sensors, have been unlocked by the many recent experimental achievements,
including motional ground-state cooling of an optically levitated nanoparticle.
We review the status, challenges and prospects of levitodynamics, the
mutidisciplinary research devoted to understanding, controlling, and using
levitated nano- and micro-objects in vacuum.
