Nano‐slit probes for near‐field optical microscopy fabricated by focused ion beams

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Abstract
The near‐field probes described in this paper are based on metallized non‐contact atomic force microscope cantilevers made of silicon. For application in high‐resolution near‐field optical/infrared microscopy, we use aperture probes with the aperture being fabricated by focused ion beams. This technique allows us to create apertures of sub‐wavelength dimensions with different geometries. In this paper we present the use of slit‐shaped apertures which show a polarization‐dependent transmission efficiency and a lateral resolution of < 100 nm at a wavelength of 1064 nm. As a test sample to characterize the near‐field probes we investigated gold/palladium structures, deposited on an ultrathin chromium sublayer on a silicon wafer, in constant‐height mode.