Near-field scanning optical microscope using a gold particle

A new near-field scanning optical microscope using a small metallic particle attached onto the tip of the silicon-nitride cantilever of an atomic force microscope is presented. In this near-field scanning optical microscope the metallic particle converts the evanescent waves generated on the sample surface to propagating waves, which are detected through the microscope objective. Feedback control of the probe height is performed using an atomic force microscope combined with the near-field scanning optical microscope. Near-field optical images of a magnetooptical disk were obtained using a gold particle of 1.0-mu m diameter attached to the cantilever and were compared with atomic force images obtained in parallel.