Probing the near fields of the super-resolution near-field optical structure

Super-resolution near-field structure, glass/SiN (170 nm)/Sb (15 nm)/SiN (20 nm), a promising structure for near-field ultrahigh-density optical data storage, has been studied by a tapping-mode tuning-fork near-field scanning optical microscope in transmission mode. Both propagating and evanescent field intensities were found at the focused spots of the surface of the super-resolution near-field structure. Images of the near-field intensity gradients at different excited laser powers (0.42-2.43 ?W) showed that the area of the static evanescent intensity could be stably controlled. The enhancement of the near-field intensity, and the reduction of the focused spot through the super-resolution near-field structure, glass/SiN (170 nm)/Sb (15 nm)/SiN (20 nm) have been observed. © 2000 American Institute of Physics.