Optical constants from scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscope
- 25 January 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by AIP Publishing in Applied Physics Letters
- Vol. 118 (4), 041103
- https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0036872
Abstract
Scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) allows for the characterization of optical properties of samples at the nanoscale, well below the diffraction limit of the interrogating wavelength. Typically, it relies on a model for the probe-sample interaction to extract complex optical constants of the sample. Here, we propose an s-SNOM calibration method that allows for the extraction of these constants without prior knowledge of the probe geometry nor the details of the probe-sample interactions. We illustrate the technique using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy-based s-SNOM to extract the optical properties of several organic and inorganic materials and differently doped regions of a standard silicon random access memory sample. The accuracy of the technique is comparable to that of conventional far-field techniques while additionally providing spatial distribution of optical constants at the nanoscale. The source-independent nature of the proposed technique makes it directly applicable for s-SNOM measurements in other spectral ranges.Funding Information
- Australian Research Council (DP200101948)
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