Probing quantum nanostructures with near-field optical microscopy and vice versa

A theory for using near-held optical microscopy to probe quantum nanostructures is presented. Optical transition rates are determined for dots excited by the near field of a tip. Local-held corrections are neglected. Results for different tip/dot configurations and sizes show that near-field excitation can enhance light-hole transitions, excite selection-rule breaking transitions with rates comparable to allowed transitions, and map electron-hole pair wave functions. Conversely, dot response can be used to characterize tip near fields.