Near-field optical microscopy with a nanodiamond-based single-photon tip

Cuche, Aurélien; Drezet, Aurélien; Sonnefraud, Yannick; Faklaris, Orestis; Treussart, François; Roch, Jean-François; Huant, S.

doi:10.1364/oe.17.019969

Cited by 88 publications

(145 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…In the nanodiamond-based NSOM probe [9], the optical behavior originates from the point-like transition dipole associated with the radiative transition of the NV colorcenter. We here neglect the finite extension of the host nanocrystal since current trends in nanodiamond processing indicate that it can be diminished down to a few nms only [19,20].…”

Section: Near-field Optical Model Of the Single-photon Tipmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The collection efficiency of the NSOM microscope as used in Ref. [9] is defined by the properties of the high numerical-aperture objective and by the nu- merical aperture of the multimode fiber which guides the collected light to the detector. We estimate that 92% of the 2π solid angle in which light is emitted in the substrate is then collected by the optical setup.…”

Section: Comparing a Point-like Emitter To An Aperture Nsom Tipmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We point out that in Ref. [9] the E 2 z contribution was neglected. We stress that using such an isotropic detector simplifies the discussion of resolution with NSOM.…”

Section: Comparing a Point-like Emitter To An Aperture Nsom Tipmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In order to improve the optical resolution of NSOM and therefore overcome this limitation one could ideally use a point-like emitting source. Recently, inspired by the pioneer work by Michaelis et al [8] who used a fluorescent single molecule at low temperature as basis for a NSOM, we developed a new high-resolution NSOM tip using a nitrogen-vacancy (NV) color-center in a diamond nanocrystal as a scanning point-like light source [9]. In this active tip the 20 nm nanocrystal is glued in situ at the apex of an etched optical fiber probe.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Near-field microscopy with a single-photon point-like emitter: Resolution versus the aperture tip?

Drezet¹,

Cuche²,

Huant³

2011

Optics Communications

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We discuss theoretically the concept of spatial resolution in near-field scanning optical microscopy (NSOM) in light of a recent work [Opt. Express 17 (2009) 19969] which reported on the achievement of active tips made of a single ultrasmall fluorescent nanodiamond grafted onto the apex of a substrate tip and on their validation in NSOM imaging. Since fluorescent nanodiamonds tend to decrease steadily in size, we assimilate a nanodiamond-based tip to a point-like single photon source and compare its ultimate resolution with that offered by standard metal-coated aperture NSOM tips. We demonstrate both classically and quantum mechanically that NSOM based on a point-like tip has a resolving power that is only limited by the scan height over the imaged system whereas the aperture-tip resolution depends critically on both the scan height and aperture diameter. This is a consequence of the complex distribution of the electromagnetic field around the aperture that tends to artificially duplicate the imaged objects. We show that the point-like tip does not suffer from this "squint" and that it rapidly approaches its ultimate resolution in the near-field as soon its scan height falls below the distance between the two nano-objects to be resolved.

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Section: Near-field Optical Model Of the Single-photon Tipmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Comparing a Point-like Emitter To An Aperture Nsom Tipmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We point out that in Ref. [9] the E 2 z contribution was neglected. We stress that using such an isotropic detector simplifies the discussion of resolution with NSOM.…”

Section: Comparing a Point-like Emitter To An Aperture Nsom Tipmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Near-field microscopy with a single-photon point-like emitter: Resolution versus the aperture tip?

Drezet¹,

Cuche²,

Huant³

2011

Optics Communications

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“…During the last decade there has been a continued effort towards the realization of nanoscale fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) with a single quantum system [10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. One system particularly well suited for this application is the nitrogen vacancy center (NV center) in diamond.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nanoscale Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging of an Optical Antenna with a Single Diamond NV Center

et al. 2013

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Abstract:Solid-state quantum emitters, such as artificially engineered quantum dots or naturally occurring defects in solids, are being investigated for applications ranging from quantum information science and optoelectronics to biomedical imaging. Recently, these same systems have also been studied from the perspective of nanoscale metrology. In this letter we study the near-field optical properties of a diamond nanocrystal hosting a single nitrogen vacancy center. We find that the nitrogen vacancy center is a sensitive probe of the surrounding electromagnetic mode structure. We exploit this sensitivity to demonstrate nanoscale fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy (FLIM) with a single nitrogen vacancy center by imaging the local density of states of an optical antenna.Controlled interaction of light and matter at the nanoscale requires a detailed understanding of the local electromagnetic mode distribution. It has been recognized for some time that, in contrast to the homogeneity exhibited by the vacuum electromagnetic modes in free space, surfaces and nanostructured environments can sculpt the local electromagnetic mode density or local density of optical states (LDOS). A manifestation of this modification, as first pointed out by Purcell [1], is that the excited state lifetime of a quantum object is not an immutable property, but depends sensitively on the system's . Important for the present work is that the NV center exhibits stable photoluminescence at room temperature (unlike most quantum dots that suffer from blinking) and the center's optical properties are preserved when the diamond host takes the form of a nanocrystal. In the following we exploit the previous features to demonstrate, for the first time, the suitability of the NV center for nanoscale FLIM by imaging a nanoscale optical antenna [28].The top panel of Fig. 1a presents an illustration of the FLIM concept. In the first modality a single quantum system (the "probe") is affixed to the vertex of a nanoscale tip and a sample to be interrogated (the "object") is scanned in close proximity to the emitter. The object perturbs the local electromagnetic environment of the probe and modifies its excited state dynamics that can be recorded as a function of the object's x-y coordinates to build an image. A second approach, followed in the present work, is to fix the probe in space, see bottom panel of Fig. 1a, and scan the object through the focus. Again, by monitoring the probe lifetime an image can be recorded. In our experiments a single NV center in a diamond nanocrystal is our probe of the nanoscale LDOS created by the object.

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Ultrafast Nano‐Focusing for Imaging and Spectroscopy with Electrons and Light

Lienau

Raschke

Ropers

2014

Attosecond Nanophysics

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There is an urgent need for improved or conceptually new, ultrafast microscopy techniques which combine the best spatial and temporal resolutions possible. Techniques need to be developed which fuse nanometer-or atomic-scale imaging, such as scanning probe microscopy with ultrafast, femto-or attosecond time resolution, which is now commonplace in ultrafast science. A multitude of highly relevant, technological processes, such as the conversion of sunlight into electrical [1-3] or chemical energy [4-6], involves, on a microscopic level, the concerted motion of electrons and atomic nuclei. These processes are therefore governed by microscopic dynamics taking place on ultrashort and ultrasmall scales. Our ability to design and optimize such devices thus crucially depend on a detailed analysis and understanding of the spatio-temporal dynamics of charge, spin and atomic lattice excitations.A broad range of time-resolved microscopy techniques are currently under development or already in use. These techniques include X-ray diffraction/microscopy with large-scale free-electron lasers [7][8][9] or tabletop sources [10,11], ultrafast electron diffraction [12][13][14][15] or microscopy [16,17], time-resolved photoelectron emission microscopy [18-20] (Chapter 10), ultrafast, aperture-based [21][22][23][24][25] or aperture-less near-field scanning optical microscopy [26][27][28], and femtosecond scanning tunneling microscopy [29][30][31][32].So far, most of the techniques mentioned earlier provide either a limited temporal or spatial resolution, and the implementation of microscopy techniques with true nanometer and (sub-)femtosecond resolution [33] remains a formidable challenge. A fundamental problem in many of these approaches is the generation of sufficiently bright and temporally short light or electron pulses which are both coherent and energetically tunable [34].

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Near-field optical microscopy with a nanodiamond-based single-photon tip

Cited by 88 publications

References 53 publications

Near-field microscopy with a single-photon point-like emitter: Resolution versus the aperture tip?

Near-field microscopy with a single-photon point-like emitter: Resolution versus the aperture tip?

Nanoscale Fluorescence Lifetime Imaging of an Optical Antenna with a Single Diamond NV Center

Ultrafast Nano‐Focusing for Imaging and Spectroscopy with Electrons and Light

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