Bayesian inference of the viscoelastic properties of a Jeffrey’s fluid using optical tweezers

Bayesian inference is a conscientious statistical method which is successfully used in many branches of physics and engineering. Compared to conventional approaches, it makes highly efficient use of information hidden in a measured quantity by predicting the distribution of future data points based on posterior information. Here we apply this method to determine the stress-relaxation time and the solvent and polymer contributions to the frequency dependent viscosity of a viscoelastic Jeffrey’s fluid by the analysis of the measured trajectory of an optically trapped Brownian particle. When comparing the results to those obtained from the auto-correlation function, mean-squared displacement or the power spectrum, we find Bayesian inference to be much more accurate and less affected by systematic errors.