<title>Near-field scanning optical microscope</title>

Abstract

A new versatile near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM) for technical and biological application have been developed in our laboratory. The microscope can be operated in all known modes, viz., scanning optical, photon tunneling and apertureless photon tunneling modes. Different methods of NSOM tip production are discussed in the paper. The maximal displacement of the coarse adjustment unit is 1 mm the approach step is about 0,05 μm. The NSOM scanner consist of a mechanical scanner with large displacement range (1 mm) on which is mounted a fine piezoscanner with a scanning range about 4 μm. The maximal scanning range of the NSOM is about 1 mm laterally and 4 μm in perpendicular to sample surface direction with rough selection of area for study in the total area about 15x15 mm under conventional optical microscopy observation (maximal magnification 100). As a sample holder are used either a glass prism in photon tunneling mode or a flat glass in scanning optical mode. The microscope has a digital control unit connected with IBM PC through a parallel interface. The NSOM high rigidity makes it possible to operated in ordinary laboratory without any additional vibration isolation devices.