ترغب بنشر مسار تعليمي؟ اضغط هنا

Understanding the image contrast of material boundaries in IR nanoscopy reaching 5 nm spatial resolution

156   0   0.0 ( 0 )
 نشر من قبل Rainer Hillenbrand
 تاريخ النشر 2019
  مجال البحث فيزياء
والبحث باللغة English




اسأل ChatGPT حول البحث

Scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) allows for nanoscale resolved Infrared (IR) and Terahertz (THz) imaging, and thus has manifold applications ranging from materials to biosciences. However, a quantitatively accurate understanding of image contrast formation at materials boundaries, and thus spatial resolution is a surprisingly unexplored terrain. Here we introduce the write/read head of a commercial hard disk drive (HDD) as a most suitable test sample for fundamental studies, given its well20 defined sharp material boundaries perpendicular to its ultra-smooth surface. We obtainunprecedented and unexpected insights into the s-SNOM image formation process, free of topography-induced artifacts that often mask and artificially modify the pure near-field optical contrast. Across metal-dielectric boundaries, we observe non-point-symmetric line profiles for both IR and THz illumination, which are fully corroborated by numericalsimulations. We explain our findings by a sample-dependent confinement and screening of the near fields at the tip apex, which will be of crucial importance for an accurate understanding and proper interpretation of high-resolution s-SNOM images of nanocomposite materials. We also demonstrate that with ultra-sharp tungsten tips the apparent width (and thus resolution) of sharp material boundaries can be reduced to about 5 nm.

قيم البحث

اقرأ أيضاً

We report a very high precision interferometric sensor with resolution up to ~{lambda}/1024, exploiting hollow photonic bandgap waveguide-based geometry for the first time. Here sensing has been measured by a complete switching in the direction of th e outgoing beam, owing to transverse momentum oscillation phenomena. Using a 1.32 {mu}m source and core-width of 7.25 {mu}m, a complete switching cycle is obtained even due to a small change of ~1 nm in the core-width. Using hollow-core photonic bandgap waveguide, Talbot effect, revivals of the initial phase, oscillation in the transverse momentum along with multi-mode interference served as the backbone of the design. The ultra-sensitive multi-mode interferometric sensor based on photonic crystals will certainly open up a paradigm shift in interferometer-based sensing technologies toward device-level applications in photonic sensing/switching and related precision measurement systems.
Silicon waveguides have enabled large-scale manipulation and processing of near-infrared optical signals on chip. Yet, expanding the bandwidth of guided waves to other frequencies would further increase the functionality of silicon as a photonics pla tform. Frequency multiplexing by integrating additional architectures is one approach to the problem, but this is challenging to design and integrate within the existing form factor due to scaling with the free-space wavelength. Here, we demonstrate that a hexagonal boron nitride (hBN)/silicon hybrid waveguide can enable dual-band operation at both mid-infrared (6.5-7.0 um) and telecom (1.55 um) frequencies, respectively. Our device is realized via lithography-free transfer of hBN onto a silicon waveguide, maintaining near-infrared operation, while mid-infrared waveguiding of the hyperbolic phonon polaritons (HPhPs) in hBN is induced by the index contrast between the silicon waveguide and the surrounding air, thereby eliminating the need for deleterious etching of the hBN. We verify the behavior of HPhP waveguiding in both straight and curved trajectories, and validate their propagation characteristics within an analytical waveguide theoretical framework. This approach exemplifies a generalizable approach based on integrating hyperbolic media with silicon photonics for realizing frequency multiplexing in on-chip photonic systems.
Scattering-type scanning near-field microscopy (s-SNOM) at terahertz (THz) frequencies could become a highly valuable tool for studying a variety of phenomena of both fundamental and applied interest, including mobile carrier excitations or phase tra nsitions in 2D materials or exotic conductors. Applications, however, are strongly challenged by the limited signal to noise ratio. One major reason is that standard atomic force microscope (AFM) tips, which have made s-SNOM a highly practical and rapidly emerging tool, provide weak scattering efficiencies at THz frequencies. Here we report a combined experimental and theoretical study of commercial and custom-made AFM tips of different apex diameter and length, in order to understand signal formation in THz s-SNOM and to provide insights for tip optimization. Contrary to common beliefs, we find that AFM tips with large (micrometer-scale) apex diameter can enhance s-SNOM signals by more than one order of magnitude, while still offering a spatial resolution of about 100 nm at a wavelength of 119 micron. On the other hand, exploiting the increase of s-SNOM signals with tip length, we succeeded in sub-15 nm resolved THz imaging employing a tungsten tip with 6 nm apex radius. We explain our findings and provide novel insights into s-SNOM via rigorous numerical modeling of the near-field scattering process. Our findings will be of critical importance for pushing THz nanoscopy to its ultimate limits regarding sensitivity and spatial resolution.
Developing a chip-based super-resolution imaging technique with large field-of-view (FOV), deep subwavelength resolution, and compatibility for both fluorescent and non-fluorescent samples is desired for material science, biomedicine, and life resear ches, etc. Previous on-chip super-resolution methods focus on either fluorescent or non-fluorescent imaging, putting an urgent requirement on the general imaging technique compatible with both of them. Here, we introduce a universal super-resolution imaging method based on tunable virtual-wavevector spatial frequency shift (TVSFS), realizing both labeled and label-free super-resolution imaging on a single delicately fabricated scalable photonic chip. Theoretically, with TVSFS, the diffraction limit of a linear optical system can be overcome, and the resolution can be improved more than three times, which is the limitation for most super-resolution imaging based on spatial frequency engineering. Diffractive units were fabricated on the chips surface to provide a wavevector-variable evanescent wave illumination and induce tunable deep SFS in the samples Fourier space. A resolution of {lambda}/4.7 for the label-free sample and {lambda}/7.1 for the labeled sample with a large FOV could be achieved with a CMOS-compatible process on a GaP chip. The large FOV, high-compatibility, and high-integration TVSFS chip may advance the fields like cell engineering, precision inspection in the industry, chemical research, etc.
Despite recent advances in active metaoptics, wide dynamic range combined with high-speed reconfigurable solutions is still elusive. Phase-change materials (PCMs) offer a compelling platform for metasurface optical elements, owing to the large index contrast and fast yet stable phase transition properties. Here, we experimentally demonstrate an in situ electrically-driven reprogrammable metasurface by harnessing the unique properties of a phase-change chalcogenide alloy, Ge$_{2}$Sb$_{2}$Te$_{5}$ (GST), in order to realize fast, non-volatile, reversible, multilevel, and pronounced optical modulation in the near-infrared spectral range. Co-optimized through a multiphysics analysis, we integrate an efficient heterostructure resistive microheater that indirectly heats and transforms the embedded GST film without compromising the optical performance of the metasurface even after several reversible phase transitions. A hybrid plasmonic-PCM meta-switch with a record electrical modulation of the reflectance over eleven-fold (an absolute reflectance contrast reaching 80%), unprecedented quasi-continuous spectral tuning over 250 nm, and switching speed that can potentially reach a few kHz is presented. Our work represents a significant step towards the development of fully integrable dynamic metasurfaces and their potential for beamforming applications.
التعليقات
جاري جلب التعليقات جاري جلب التعليقات
سجل دخول لتتمكن من متابعة معايير البحث التي قمت باختيارها
mircosoft-partner

هل ترغب بارسال اشعارات عن اخر التحديثات في شمرا-اكاديميا