OPTICAL NEAR-FIELD MICROSCOPY - APPLICATION TO SEMICONDUCTORS

Near field optical microscopy has become largely investigated even if the implementation, the specifications, the interpretation of images are not satisfactorily mastered. This paper describes the particular situation of semiconductors which behaves differently because of their high refractive index. Transparent semiconductor AFM tips can be used as optical transducers of very high performances. First investigations on comparative transmission properties are presented corresponding to silicon nitride tips and also doped silicon tips on a InP surface. It is shown that the exceptionnally small relative aperture on the Si tips induces a new behaviour which we interpret as the first evidence of a photonic resonnant tunneling effect.