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Surface plasmons (SPs) are surface-bound electromagnetic waves supported by metals, offering the possibility of strong spatial confinement of electromagnetic fields on the micro- and nanoscales. They suffer, however, from strong damping caused by internal absorption and radiation losses. Here we demonstrate amplification of SPs by stimulated emission, which marks a possible solution to this problem. We use an attenuated-total-reflection setup to detect stimulated emission of SPs at the interface between a silver film and an optically pumped dye solution acting as the amplifying medium. Clear evidence of stimulated emission is provided by an excellent agreement of the experimental observations with a theoretical analysis. Amplification of SPs can be considered analogous to photon amplification in a laser, thereby suggesting novel approaches in the field of nano-optics.

The combination of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) with optical excitation adds new information to STM. A review is presented covering the work done on light-induced effects in STM during the past 15 years. Effects discussed include thermal effects, nonlinear effects, field enhancement at the STM tip, various effects on semiconductor surfaces, excitation of surface plasmons, detection of photoelectrons, spin-polarized tunneling, as well as light-induced nanomodifications, local optical spectroscopy, the use of ultrashort laser pulses for time-resolved STM, and the combination of STM and scanning near-field optical microscopy.

We demonstrate the imaging of ferroelectric domains in BaTiO3, using an infrared-emitting free-electron laser as a tunable optical source for scattering scanning near-field optical microscopy and spectroscopy. When the laser is tuned into the spectral vicinity of a phonon resonance, ferroelectric domains can be resolved due to the anisotropy of the dielectric properties of the material. Slight detuning of the wavelength gives rise to a contrast reversal clearly evidencing the resonant character of the excitation. The near-field domain contrast shows that the orientation of the dielectric tensor with respect to the sample surface has a clear influence on the near-field signal.

The periodic thermal expansion of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) tips arising under irradiation with power-modulated laser light has been investigated. The expansion was determined by comparison with a calibrated piezomotion measured in an STM, which was operated in the constant-current mode, and instrumental effects were corrected for. The experimental data concerning the frequency response of the thermal expansion for various geometries of the tip and for different positions of the laser focus are compared with theoretical results which were derived from a numerical solution of the equation of heat conduction. A very good agreement is found. The results are also interpreted in terms of simplified analytical expressions. Furthermore, the theoretical data are used to derive the response of the tip to fast transients of the light power as in the case of pulsed irradiation.

A theoretical analysis of the lateral force as measured with a scanning force microscope is performed, showing that the lateral force signal contains a topography-induced component which is proportional to the slope of the surface, in addition to the signal arising from the tangential force. Measurements carried out on corrugated samples (gold, indium-tin-oxide, diamond) are analysed within the framework of this theory on the basis of a simple physical model for the forces, taking into account a repulsive normal force, a tangential friction force, and an adhesion force. The correlation between the lateral force and the topography is confirmed quantitatively. Furthermore, friction mfficients are determined and the influence of the adhesion force on the data is discussed.

Surface workfunction changes upon C60 adsorption onto different metal single crystals are investigated by Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). Literature values for similar metal/organic systems, showing a broad variation for both the measured metal workfunction and workfunction change, are compared to the acquired KPFM values. Good agreement is found between nanoscopic KPFM results and macroscopic photoelectron spectroscopy or Kelvin probe literature data. The model of a linear dependence between the metal substrate workfunction and the C60-induced workfunction change is confirmed. Former numerical simulations predicted a lateral quantitative KPFM resolution in the range of 10 nm, in this work results are published that show the achievement of this resolution with Cr coated, sharp tips. Furthermore, numerical simulations are presented that show the possibility of molecular contrast for KPFM.