The development of near-field optics marked a major advance in microscopy and our ability to develop nanoscale technologies. However, the tapered optical fiber widely in use as the optical near-field probe has serious limitations in its fabrication, its optical transmission efficiency, and its use in arrays.
Fabrication of Silicon Microprobes for Optical Near-Field Applications reports on several technological approaches to using silicon micromachining techniques for fabricating microprobes without the drawbacks of conventional optical fiber probes. The authors have developed a simple,...