JP2003014609A - Minute region scattering probe, method for controlling distance of probe, and method for manufacturing the probe - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To allow a probe to have high utilization efficiency in proximity field light and to be used also for machining or the like since the probe conforms to scattering type SNOM, to prevent the probe from being damaged mechanically by using the fine region probe without any probe section, and to provide a system for performing conventional microscope observation since the system is composed with an inverted microscope as a base, and further for observing the structure of a detailed section by SNOM, and to improve operability since the probe can be exchanged easily while light through put is poor and utilization efficiency of light is low due to loss in an opening type SNOM. SOLUTION: A flat chip probe made of a dielectric being manufactured by micro machining is integrated with an objective lens and is used as a near- field probe, and is built into a microscope for utilization for a near-field inspection apparatus so that the optical system of the conventional microscope can be utilized.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention is used in a scanning near-field microscope for the purpose of observing the shape of a solid surface in the nanometer region and measuring optical properties by irradiating or exciting the surface of an object to be measured. The present invention relates to a microscopic region scattering probe serving as an optical probe, a method for controlling the distance of the probe, and a method for manufacturing the probe.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional near-field probe of this type will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2a shows a state in which a needle-shaped probe with a small tip R made of PtIr or the like comes close to the prism surface. Scattered SNOM (Scanning Near-Field) is a method of obtaining super-resolution by scattering the evanescent field generated on the prism surface by total internal reflection illumination from the back surface of the prism and scattering at the tip of the needle.
Optical Microscope). With this method, IBM's Wickermachine et al.
It was reported that it can be observed with a resolution of nm. recently,
Due to the electric field enhancement effect of surface plasmons, it has been noted that the measurement sensitivity of samples with extremely low absorbance can be increased (H.Kano et al. Opt.Let).
t., 21-22, 1848-1850 (1996)).

FIG. 2b shows an alternative method (USPate
nt No. 4469554) (JP-A-6-130302) (JP-A-7-17)
4542), (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6160719) and the like, which is called an aperture type SNOM. The probe is made by sharpening a glass capillary and an optical fiber, and further coating the periphery with a metal. With the development of microfabrication technology, it has become possible to fabricate probes with very sharp tips. In this method, laser light is guided from the end of the probe to the opening at the tip, and the surface of the sample is excited from the minute holes (openings) formed therein to obtain super-resolution.

A probe of wavelength conversion type has been reported by modifying the tip of an aperture type probe with an organic dye (US Patent No.5546223, Patent No.5105305,
US Patent No.5479024).

Also, a self-luminous type optical probe having a light emitting mechanism inside the probe has been reported (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 11).
-29227 publication).

Further, regarding a high-density memory having an apparatus configuration in which STM and AFM are combined, recording is performed by applying a voltage between the probe and the recording medium by STM control, and the recording bit shape is detected by the AFM configuration. A recording / reproducing apparatus for reproducing, a recording / reproducing apparatus for controlling the probe position during recording and reproducing by applying the principle of AFM, and a deformation of an elastic body supporting the probe are used during recording and reproducing. There has also been proposed a recording / reproducing device in which a probe follows the surface of a recording medium (Japanese Patent Laid-Open Nos. 1-245445 and 4-321955).

[0007]

However, the conventional scattering type SNOM has a limitation that the sample is transparent because it is necessary to illuminate light from under the sample (prism side).
Further, there is a problem that the sample is photobleached because the sample is constantly illuminated with light.

On the other hand, in the case of the aperture type SNOM, since the throughput of light inside the probe is small, the amount of light that can be used is small and the S / N in the measurement is a problem, and recording and processing are difficult in reality. Further, in the case of a probe made of an optical fiber or the like, the operation of handling a thin and easily broken fiber is very complicated. In addition, depending on the purpose, when it is desired to use light of different wavelengths, there is a cut-off wavelength in the fiber, so it is necessary to make a probe with different optical fibers for each wavelength. Since the laser light source oscillates light with good monochromaticity, wavelength conversion using the nonlinear optical effect is necessary to obtain light in a wide wavelength range, but there is a wavelength limitation of the light transmitted by the fiber itself. Therefore, the absorption measurement of the sample in the scanning near-field microscope could not be performed.

When a light polarization experiment is desired, a scattering type SNOM that uses total internal reflection of a prism has a limitation in use due to the influence of an interface, and in the case of an aperture type SNOM, it is difficult to control the shape of the aperture. was there.

A system (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-29227) in which light is emitted only from a minute aperture point by an electroluminescence mechanism such as an organic EL element has been proposed, but it has a drawback that the probe has a small light quantity.

In view of the above, the present invention proposes a probe system that can efficiently use the excitation light and can also utilize the effect of enhancing the electric field in order to solve the above problems and can be easily replaced.

[0012]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In an aperture type probe using a waveguide such as an optical fiber, the light utilization efficiency is extremely high due to the loss at the time of optical coupling into the waveguide and the loss of light near the aperture. become worse.

The scattering type probe has a drawback that the sample is transparent and that the sample is constantly illuminated.
In the present invention, a thin plate-shaped scattering probe has been developed. It is characterized in that the excitation optical system is devised so that light is guided from the probe side instead of the sample side to excite a minute region similar to the aperture type, and that light with a strong electric field intensity can be used.
In addition, it is possible to improve the production efficiency of the probe and produce a homogeneous one by manufacturing it by the micromachine process. The chip-shaped body makes it easy to handle.

The probe according to the present invention excites (illuminates) light.
Since the probe is located on the side, the sample is not illuminated with light when the sample and the probe are distant from each other, and unlike the conventional scattering probe, does not cause photobleaching of the sample. This is an advantageous method for increasing the S / N of photodetection such as optical recording because it lowers the background light level. Further, unlike the aperture type probe, it is not necessary to coat the probe tip with metal, so that the tip size can be made small and the spatial resolution is not deteriorated. Further, by combining the prism and the objective lens with the probe, the operation of the optical system and the adjustment of the observation position can be made very easy to handle, as in the case of using a microscope. Since it is a scattering type probe, the conditions of light wavelength and polarization plane can be set on the light source side. We also propose a new control method for controlling the sample-probe distance. Since the probe is controlled by light rather than by mechanical characteristics, instability due to the influence of the environment on the material does not occur. Light of different wavelengths or light of a wide wavelength range can be used, and absorption measurement can be performed.

[0015]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the structure of a small area scattering probe 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1a
In, a fine projection 3 having a width of 50 nm and a height of 50 nm is formed on the surface of the dielectric 2 that is flattened on the nanometer scale. As the dielectric 2 as a member, a glass plate having a refractive index of 1.52, which is commercially available and is inexpensive and easily available, is used. The material of the small protrusions 3 may be a dielectric or a metal. In the case of metal, the electric field enhancing effect of surface plasmon can be utilized as will be shown later. The resonance condition of the surface plasmon can be used for controlling the optical distance between the microscopic region scattering probe 1 and the sample, and in the case of the excitation light, a higher excitation density can be realized. The projection shape is preferably a cone or pyramid shape in order to measure the surface irregularities of the sample as an AFM.

The laser beam is a microscopic area scattering probe 1.
It is used at an angle equal to or greater than the critical angle such that it is incident from the lower surface and totally reflected on the surface of the dielectric 2. At this time, an evanescent wave is generated in the area of the beam spot diameter on the surface of the dielectric 2. The beam spot can be narrowed down to about half the wavelength of the light when a high-performance focusing optical system is used, but in the microscopic region scattering probe 1 of the present invention, the lens numerical aperture of the focusing optical system does not determine the resolution. Since it does not exist, the order of μm is sufficient. Since the evanescent wave is a standing wave localized on the surface, it cannot be observed from the outside. When a field-disturbing structure such as the minute protrusions 3 is present therein, the evanescent wave is converted into scattered light (traveling wave). Since it can be observed from the outside after being converted into scattered light, the structure causing scattering, in this case, the minute projections 3 determines the size of the minute light source.

A radius of 5 μ around the microscopic region scattering probe 1
Step 4 with a step of about 1 μm at a size of about m
Is provided. Since the minute projections 3 have a size of about 50 nm, they cannot be seen even when they are magnified with a microscope, and therefore the optical system cannot be adjusted by direct observation. Therefore, step 4 is provided on the probe member to serve as a mark when adjusting the optical system. However, the incident beam is focused so as to be inside the radius of about 5 μm. This is because if the laser beam is applied to the steps, scattering will occur due to the edges.

Since step 4 is a mark for searching for the microscopic region scattering probe 1, the step is not limited to the above step, and a periodic structure formed on the substrate may be used.

The fine scattering region preferably has the shape of the fine projection 3 as shown in FIG. 1a in order to obtain an AFM unevenness image of the sample surface as a scanning microscope. However, the shape information of the sample surface is not so important, and a use of only optical information can be considered. For example, in the case of a recording medium such as an optical disc, a probe scans a flat sample, whose structure is known in advance over a wide range, with a fixed gap to detect high resolution optical information (high density recording). This is the case. In such a case, it is rather a problem if the sample surface is scratched. In that case, the depression 5 as shown in FIG.
It is also possible to use the minute region scattering probe 1 having the form of Also, as shown in FIG. 1c, the dielectric material 2 having a refractive index of 2
Refractive index part 6 that is larger or smaller than 0.5
It is also possible to use the minute region scattering probe 1 having The refractive index portion 6 may be made of metal in the same manner as the minute protrusions 3 of FIG. 1a may be made of metal.

FIG. 3 shows an incident optical system for the small area scattering probe 1 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 3a, a prism is used as a coupling optical system for incident light. A prism is an optical element that can combine light easily and efficiently when it is difficult to combine light very thin like a waveguide. The same refractive index as that of the microscopic region scattering probe 1 is used for the prism. Further, in order to match the incident angles and remove the cause of scattering due to the roughness of the joint surface, the joints are made with the immersion oil 22 having the same refractive index. Further, in the scanning probe microscope, an external vibration becomes a problem at the time of measurement, so that there is an advantage that the microscopic region scattering probe 1 itself can be stably fixed to the prism and the microscopic region scattering probe can be easily replaced.

In the case of a normal rectangular prism alone, the surface of the microscopic region scattering probe and the sample cannot be observed from the incident side (the lower surface in the figure). For this purpose, two prisms 7 are used in combination in FIG. 3a. As a matter of course, these prisms have the same refractive index and are joined with the immersion oil 22 having the same refractive index. As a result, the bonding position of the microscopic region scattering probe 1 and the relative position of the microscopic region scattering probe 1 and the sample can be determined from the bottom surface of the microscopic region scattering probe 1 by C
It can be adjusted while observing with a CD camera.

For the same reason as above, in order to observe the light from the incident side (lower surface in the figure), the prism lower surface may be cut as shown in FIG. 3b.

Two examples using the prism 7 have been shown above.
A numerical aperture (NA) as shown in FIG. 3c is used as an optical system for simultaneously injecting light and monitoring the microscopic region scattering probe 1.
A method using an objective lens 8 having a large Since it is necessary for the objective lens 8 to perform total reflection illumination using the outer portion of the lens, it is also an important condition that the entrance 24 is wide. When glass with a refractive index of 1.52 is used for the micro area probe 1, the refractive index of air is almost 1, so the critical angle θ of total reflection is 41.8 °. As a concrete example, if an objective lens with NA 1.65 (PlanApo, 100X OHR manufactured by Olympus) is used, the entrance 24 becomes large, so as shown in the figure, the part corresponding to NA 1.4 is 4.8 mm, Still 0.6m
Since there are m each, there is room to use above the critical angle.

The probe-sample distance control optical system and the excitation optical system according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The figure shows a state in which the objective lens 8 is used as a coupling system and the microscopic region scattering probe 1 is bonded with immersion oil 22. Two beams having different wavelengths are incident on the objective lens 8 at a critical angle of total reflection or more. They are referred to as a control beam 9 for the probe-sample distance and an excitation beam 10, respectively. It is important that the control beam 9 does not have a wavelength band that directly excites a sample such as an organic substance.
The infrared region is desirable.

When the introduction of light into the objective lens 8 is three-dimensionally drawn, the following two types of FIG. 4b and FIG. 4c are possible. Figure 4b
Then, the control beam 9 passes vertically through the inner portion 12 of the incident side 45-degree mirror 11, and the excitation beam 10 passes through the left and right outer portions 13.

In FIG. 4c, after each beam is shaped into a donut shape by an optical element, the control beam 9 passes through the inner portion 12 of the incident side 45-degree mirror 11 and the excitation beam 10 passes through the outer portion 13. Use as you would. In both cases of FIG. 4b and FIG. 4c, the 45 degree mirror 11
The inner part 12 and the outer part 13 may be processed as dichroic mirrors corresponding to the wavelengths used respectively, or as total reflection mirrors. The central portion 14 further inside than the inner portion 12 is a portion that allows the light from the objective lens 8 to pass therethrough, and thus may not have the glass portion.

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a probe-sample distance control mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. For simplicity, the drawing is made using a prism, and the laser beam means the control beam 9 shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5 a, the light that is totally reflected from the lower surface of the prism 7 produces an evanescent wave on the surface of the prism 7 and returns to the inside of the prism 7. When the sample 15 having a much larger area than the minute projections 3 approaches the vicinity of the surface of the prism 7, the evanescent wave is disturbed and scattered light is generated. In the case of total reflection, 100% of the light is reflected, so
When the total energy is written as an equation, incident light = reflected light + scattered light, and it is possible to know the approach of the sample by monitoring the amount of light that is totally reflected and returned by the detector 16.

Further, the probe-sample distance can be controlled by utilizing the following phenomenon. FIG. 5b shows the angular dependence of the reflectance of light incident from glass with a refractive index of 1.5 at the interface of air (refractive index 1). Rs and Rp indicate the cases of S-polarized light and P-polarized light, respectively. Regardless of the plane of polarization, the critical angle is 41.8 °, and the curve of the graph increases sharply as it approaches the critical angle. This graph shows the case of incident light from a medium with a refractive index of 1.5 to a medium with a refractive index of 1, and in the case of a medium with a refractive index of 1 or more instead of air, the curve shifts to the high angle side, The critical angle becomes large. Since approaching the sample corresponds to changing the total reflection condition from a refractive index of 1 to a refractive index of more than 1, when the incident light is used at the limit of the critical angle, the total reflection condition other than the light loss due to scattering is A great effect that the amount of reflected light itself decreases due to not being satisfied can be used for distance control.

In addition to this, there is a method of controlling the approach between the probe and the sample with higher sensitivity by devising the optical system. FIG. 5c shows a view in which a cavity is formed in the incident optical system of FIG. 5a. When forming a cavity, a high reflection mirror 25 having a high reflectance is placed outside the prism, and a standing wave is cast inside the cavity. Since the resonance condition of the cavity collapses when the sample approaches the probe unit, the distance can be detected with higher sensitivity than the above method. By creating a cavity, interference fringe-like evanescent waves are generated on the probe surface due to the interference of incident light and reflected light, but the height of the microprotrusions is small and the purpose is to detect the approach of the surface of the sample. Is no problem. Further, since the high reflection mirror 25 is used, the light amount inside the cavity is weaker than in the case where there is no such light, but since it is used not for the excitation light but for distance detection, there is no problem in measurement.

When the minute projections 3 of the minute region scattering probe 1 are made of metal, or when the sample to be measured is made of metal, surface plasmons can be excited by evanescent waves.
In that case, a phenomenon in which the amount of reflected light is attenuated by a specific incident angle occurs, so that the resonance condition of surface plasmon excitation can also be used for distance control.

Control can also be performed by turning on / off the pulsed light source or the light at high speed with respect to the incident control light. A fast response detector is used. When the prism surface (sample surface) is a clean surface, the intensity of light is attenuated by the electrical modulation speed from ON to OFF, but when an object with a refractive index of 1 or more approaches the surface, There is a difference in attenuation. The distance can be controlled by utilizing this fact.

The distance between the probe and the sample can be controlled by any of the above methods or a combination thereof.

FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a mechanical operation mechanism when the microscopic region scattering probe 1 according to the seventh embodiment of the present invention is used in a scanning near field optical microscope. Figure 6
“A” indicates the installation portion of the minute area scattering probe 1. The probe stage 17 is placed on the objective lens 8 of the inverted microscope so as to cover the objective lens 8, and the rubber 2 is placed around the objective lens.
It is installed on top of 3. A circular hole is formed on the upper surface of the probe stage 17 and is not in contact with the objective lens at all. The probe stage eaves portion 19 can be adjusted in XY position relative to the objective lens 8 by being pressed against the rubber 23 by the micrometer 18 arranged in a position symmetrical about three axes around the objective lens 8. . By further pressing the rubber evenly, the objective lens of the microscopic region scattering probe 1 placed on
Adjust the Z focusing. The above operation is performed while the microscopic region probe is bonded to the objective lens 8 with the immersion oil 22, and the center of the microscopic region scattering probe 1 is shown in FIG.
Align with the center of the field of view of the lens while using Step 4 shown in (4) as a mark. In addition to this, since the XYZ position adjusting coarse movement mechanism between the sample and the probe and the same fine movement mechanism using the piezoelectric element are required as a system, the probe position adjusting mechanism described above needs to be made small and solid. The probe stage 17 has an advantage that the microscopic region scattering probe 1 and the optical system can be handled as one body.

FIG. 6b shows a probe-sample XYZ alignment coarse movement mechanism. A three-axis fine movement mechanism (scanner 27) using a piezoelectric element holds the sample downward on the lower surface and is mounted on the microscope sample stage 20. By moving the microscope sample stage 20 in the XY directions, the sample can be moved in the XY directions relative to the objective lens 8 holding the microscopic region scattering probe. The coarse movement mechanism in the Z direction is performed by moving up and down the objective lens holding the microscopic region scattering probe. Although light is coupled to the microscopic region scattering probe by an objective lens, this optical system is an infinity focus system, so that there is no problem in measurement even if the objective lens 8 is moved up and down. By using the revolver 26 of the objective lens, the degree of freedom for exchanging the ordinary objective lens on which the micro area probe is not mounted is secured, and the function of the conventional microscope can be similarly used.

FIG. 6c is a view of the table on which the three-axis fine movement mechanism (scanner 27) by the piezoelectric element, which is the XYZ position adjustment coarse movement mechanism, is placed from above. The sample is fixed on the lower surface of the scanner 27, but the sample surface is not horizontal with respect to the microscopic region scattering probe because of the thickness of the sample itself and an inclination during fixing. Horizontal adjustment of the sample surface is performed by the screws 21 arranged symmetrically about three axes. It is important to be independent of the positioning mechanism that aligns the microscopic region scattering probe with the center of the objective lens and the XYZ alignment coarse movement mechanism between the microscopic region scattering probe and the sample. The horizontal adjustment of the sample surface can be done smoothly by switching to a normal objective lens. The screw 21 can also adjust the Z distance between the sample and the micro area probe by adjusting the foot length evenly. Since the scanner 27 is hollow, in the case of a transparent sample, the transmitted light can also be observed with an epi-illumination microscope.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a process of producing a minute area scattering probe according to an eighth embodiment of the present invention. The scanning probe microscope is excellent not only for inspecting the material surface but also for nano-sized processing because of its accurate position control. The nano-sized protrusion as in the present invention can be produced, and the inspection can be performed at the same time.

FIG. 7 (a) is a diagram showing the structure of the substrate and the metal film which are the basis of the microscopic region scattering probe. The surface is flattened and has a high refractive index (n = 1.74) and a thickness of 0.14.
The glass substrate 28 of ~ 0.17mm is ultrasonically cleaned sequentially with isopropyl alcohol and acetone, and finally UV.
Make the surface hydrophilic by cleaning with ozone (O3). On top of that, a Ti film 29 is formed by an ion assisted vacuum deposition method.
Is deposited to about 50 nm. A minute protrusion is produced by locally oxidizing the Ti film 29, but since the volume expansion is approximately twice that of the film, this value is for producing a protrusion having a height of about 100 nm. The shape of the protrusion should theoretically be conical (D. Richards et. Al, J. Microscopy
202 66-71 (2001)), but for that purpose, the Ti film must be dense and have good adhesion to the substrate.
Therefore, the above-mentioned surface cleaning, hydrophilic treatment, and film formation by the ion assist method are important.

Next, as shown in FIG. 7 (b), it is a view showing a state in which minute protrusions are formed by anodic oxidation. Au on the surface
Using an AFM probe 30 coated with
Connect the cathode to u. Since the AFM probe 30 needs to be in contact with the Ti film 29, the distance between the tip and the Ti film 29 is controlled by the contact mode AFM. When a voltage is applied to both, only the portion in contact with the chip is anodized. The oxidation mechanism is that the water present in the atmosphere is caused by the AFM probe 30 and the Ti film 2.
This is because it is adsorbed in the vicinity between the 9 surfaces and an electrochemical oxidation reaction occurs. Oxygen (O) enters the Ti film 29 to cause volume expansion, which causes local swelling, but the AFM probe 30 uses the contact mode AFM for the Ti film 3
Since the distance from 0 is controlled to be constant, the growth of the minute protrusions 31 is not hindered or destroyed.
Although the conditions may vary depending on factors such as humidity and the size of the AFM probe 30, empirically, when a voltage of about 15 V is applied for 2 minutes, the oxidation of Ti reaches the glass surface and the desired shape is completed.

FIG. 7 (c) is a view showing a state in which the metal film portion other than the minute projections 31 produced by oxidation is removed. When the substrate prepared in Fig. 7 (b) is immersed in hot HCl solution, it becomes metallic.
As Ti is melted, only the fine projections 31 of TiO2 remain on the substrate. Depending on the composition, TiO2 can have a refractive index of about 2.5 at a wavelength of 550 nm. (M.Vergohl et. Al, Thin
Solid Films 351 42-47 (1999)). Since this is higher than the refractive index of the glass substrate, in the excitation method described with reference to FIG. 1, light can enter even inside the protrusion to generate an evanescent field on the surface.

The same process can be performed for a glass substrate on which Si is formed, and the minute projections 31 of SiO 2 can be produced. In that case, since the minute protrusions 31 and the glass 28 of the substrate can be made of the same material, it can be expected that an integrated chip can be obtained, but it is difficult at present because there is no method of removing only Si without destroying the flatness of the substrate.

Similarly, a method of nano-printing the minute protrusions 31 on a mold and a transparent material having a good molding property such as a polymer by a processing method using a scanning probe microscope and mass production can be considered. FIG. 8 illustrates a mass production process of the minute area scattering probe according to the ninth embodiment of the present invention. In this case, the film to be anodized may be either of the above-mentioned methods of Ti and Si, but considering the process of taking a mold,
It is necessary to consider the release characteristics of the flat protrusions of the substrate, the adhesive polymer of the substrate and the substrate. Moreover, since it is not used directly as a micro-projection chip, it is not necessary for the parts to be transparent. Therefore, it is considered best to make SiO2 minute protrusions on the Si substrate.

FIG. 8 (a) shows a product in which the minute protrusions 31 of SiO2 are produced from the Si substrate by the method described in the eighth embodiment. Using this as a mold, the surface of the processing material 32 is pressed as shown in FIG. 8B (nano printing). As the processing material 32, aluminum, gold, nickel, resin, resist or the like is used. When the mold part is removed, the ultrafine structure pattern is transferred to the processing material 32 (FIG. 8).
(c). When this pattern is copied with a material such as a polymer that is transparent and has good moldability, the microprojection tip 33 as shown in FIG.
Is completed. As the polymer, an ultraviolet curable resin (EPON SU-8 (n = 1.51) [US Patent No. 4882245
(1989)]) is considered. The near-field chip fabrication method using SU-8 is the fiber probe type BJ Kim et al. (J.
Microscopy 202126-21, (2001)), the method there is transfer to a chip made by MEMS,
The manufacturing method of the tip portion of the chip is completely different from that of the present invention.
In addition to the above, as the polymer, molding is performed using polycarbonate (n = 1.58), methyl methacrylate (n = 1.49 to 1.54), polystyrene (n = 1.59), etc., which are used in optical disks and the like. May be.

As is clear from the above description, since it is a scattering type probe, the excitation light can be used efficiently, and since it does not have a needle-like shape, an expensive probe is mechanically destroyed. That is, the probe replacement work is easy and the system has good operability.

[0046]

The present invention is carried out in the form as described above, and has the following effects. Since it does not take the form of a pencil-type optical probe with a sharpened tip, but has microscopic protrusions on a thin plate, the risk of damage due to handling the probe is reduced. Since it is attached to a microscope for use, it does not require probe replacement work, making it cheaper and operability is greatly improved. The efficiency of light that can be used was extremely low due to the loss of light by propagating light in a waveguide such as an optical fiber and the loss of light by transmitting light through a minute aperture by a tunnel phenomenon. The utilization efficiency is high because the scattering of a minute area is used as a light source. Since the scattering phenomenon is a light source, the wavelength that can be used from visible light to near infrared light is wide, and it is not necessary to pay attention to wavelength dispersion and time dispersion when using a pulse light source. Micro area (or sample)
When a metal is used for the surface plasmon resonance, there is an advantage that the electric field strength can be further increased. Therefore, it can be used for absorption measurement, fluorescence measurement, time-resolved absorption measurement, time-resolved fluorescence measurement and the like. mass production·
High quality probe can be manufactured by micromachine process. Furthermore, it can be used for chemical synthesis using near-field optics, optical processing technology, and optical recording.

[Brief description of drawings] .

FIG. 1 shows the structure of a microscopic region scattering probe of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a form of a conventional near-field probe.

FIG. 3 shows an incident optical system for a microscopic region scattering probe of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a distance control optical system and an excitation optical system of the small area scattering probe of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a control control mechanism between a microscopic region scattering probe and a sample according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 XY in a microscopic region scattering probe according to the present invention
The Z coarse movement mechanism is shown.

FIG. 7 shows a microscopic region scattering probe according to the present invention,
It is a figure showing a manufacturing process of a minute field scattering probe.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a microscopic region scattering probe according to the present invention,
It is a figure showing a manufacturing process of a minute field scattering probe.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Small area scattering probe 2 ... Dielectric 3 ... Small protrusion 4 ... Step 5 ... hollow 6 ... Refractive index part 7 ... Prism 8 ... Objective lens 9 ... Control beam 10 ... Excitation beam 11 ... 45 degree mirror 12 ... Inside part 13 ... Outer part 14 ... Center 15 ... Sample 16 ... Detector 17 ... Probe stage 18 ... Micrometer 19 ... eaves 20: Microscope sample stage 21 ... screw 22 ... Immersion oil 23 ... Rubber 24 ... Entrance 25: High reflection mirror 26 ... Revolver 27 ... Scanner 28 ... Glass substrate 29 ... Ti film 30 ... AFM probe 31 ... Small protrusion 32 ... Processing material 33 ... Micro projection tip

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) G11B 7/22 G11B 7/22 G12B 21/06 G12B 1/00 601C (72) Inventor Takashi Hiraga Osaka Ikeda, Osaka 1-83-1, Midorigaoka, Yokohama-shi Independent administrative agency National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology Kansai center (72) Inventor Masato Iyagi 1-8 Nakase, Mihama-ku, Chiba, Chiba Seiko Instruments Inc. F-term (reference) ) 2F065 AA06 AA49 DD16 FF00 FF44 FF46 GG04 GG21 HH04 HH12 JJ03 JJ08 JJ26 LL05 LL12 LL46 PP24 5D118 AA01 AA06 AA14 CA11 CC06 CC11 CC12 CD02 CAT03 JA40 EC37 JA40 A32 A43 A03 A43 A32 A43 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A32 A40

Claims (24)

[Claims] 1. An optical probe for use in a near-field optical microscope, which is made of a thin plate-shaped dielectric having a large refractive index, has a flat surface on the order of nanometers, and produces a minute nonuniform region near the surface. A microscopic region scattering probe, which scatters evanescent light by being applied. 2. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 1, wherein the microscopic non-uniform region of the microscopic region scattering probe is a microprojection formed on a flat surface of a nanoscale. 3. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 1, wherein the nonuniform region of the microscopic region scattering probe is a microscopic low refractive index region formed on a flat surface of nanoscale. 4. The micro region scattering probe according to claim 1, wherein the micro non-uniform region of the micro region scattering probe is a micro recess formed on a flat surface of a nanoscale. 5. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 1, wherein the microscopic nonuniform region of the microscopic region scattering probe is a dielectric. 6. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 1, wherein the microscopic nonuniform region of the microscopic region scattering probe is made of metal. 7. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 1, wherein the microscopic region scattering probe is provided with a step or periodic structure around the microscopic non-uniform region of the substrate. 8. The light coupling to the microscopic region scattering probe is characterized in that an evanescent wave is generated on the surface by making the light incident on the back surface of the probe and totally reflecting the light on the probe surface. Item 7. A minute region scattering probe according to item 7. 9. An optical system used for coupling light to the micro-region scattering probe is a prism made of a dielectric material having the same refractive index as that of the micro-region scattering probe member, and the space between the micro-region scattering probe and the prism is 9. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein the oil is immersed in oil having the same refractive index. 10. An optical system used for coupling light to the microscopic region scattering probe is an oil immersion objective lens having NA 1.4 or more, and an oil immersion oil having the same refractive index is used between the microscopic region scattering probe and the objective lens. The minute area scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein the minute area scattering probe is closely contacted. 11. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein the microscopic region scattering probe is used by amplifying the electric field strength of a near field by the resonance phenomenon of surface plasmon. 12. The micro-region scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein the optical system used for the micro-region scattering probe can freely change the plane of polarization for the sample by using an objective lens. 13. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein from the near-ultraviolet to the near-infrared region can be simultaneously and continuously used as the wavelength of light used for the microscopic region-scattering probe. 14. The method for controlling the distance of a microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein an attenuation amount of excitation light is used as a method for bringing the microscopic region scattering probe close to the sample surface. 15. The microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 14, wherein the attenuation amount of the excitation light in the distance control method for the microscopic region scattering probe is energy absorption due to plasmon excitation or wavelength shift of a light absorption peak. Distance control method. 16. The distance of the microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 14, wherein the attenuation amount of the excitation light in the method of controlling the distance of the microscopic region scattering probe is an increase of the scattered light as the sample surface approaches. Control method. 17. A method of bringing the microscopic region scattering probe close to the sample surface is characterized in that a resonator is formed at least in the excitation optical system and the resonance condition of the resonator changes as the sample approaches. The distance control method for a microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 14. 18. As a method for bringing the microscopic region scattering probe close to the sample surface, total reflection conditions are satisfied by injecting light at a critical angle of total reflection, and when this is used as a threshold value, it changes as the sample approaches. 14. The method for controlling the distance of a microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 8, wherein the method is used. 19. The distance control of the microscopic region scattering probe according to claim 14, wherein the microscopic region scattering probe uses two independent lights of excitation light and probe sample distance control light. Method. 20. The method according to claim 14, wherein the two beams are incident on the microscopic region scattering probe spatially isotropic by forming a ring-shaped beam to prevent interference. 20. A method for controlling a distance of a minute region scattering probe according to item 19. 21. The method for manufacturing the microscopic region scattering probe is such that a Ti film formed on a glass substrate surface is Au-coated.
A method for producing a microscopic region scattering probe by locally anodizing with an AFM probe and then removing the surrounding Ti film. 22. A method of manufacturing the microscopic region scattering probe, wherein a Ti film formed on a glass substrate surface is Au-coated.
After locally anodizing with an AFM probe, the surrounding Ti film is removed to form protrusions, then aluminum, gold,
A metal mold is made by nano-printing technology that presses on the surface of processed materials such as nickel resin and resist, and is molded with a transparent and moldable polymer such as polycarbonate, polystyrene, polyethylene, polymethylmethacrylate, or an ultraviolet curable resin. A method for producing a microscopic region scattering probe. 23. A method of manufacturing the microscopic region scattering probe, wherein a Si film formed on a surface of a glass substrate is Au-coated.
After locally anodizing with an AFM probe, the surrounding Si film is removed to form protrusions, then aluminum, gold,
A metal mold is made by nano-printing technology that presses on the surface of processed materials such as nickel resin and resist, and is molded with a transparent and moldable polymer such as polycarbonate, polystyrene, polyethylene, polymethylmethacrylate, or an ultraviolet curable resin. A method for producing a microscopic region scattering probe. 24. The method for manufacturing the microscopic region scattering probe is such that a Si substrate is locally anodized by an Au-coated AFM probe, and then a Ti film in the periphery is removed to form protrusions, and then aluminum, gold, A metal mold is made by nano-printing technology that presses on the surface of processed materials such as nickel resin and resist, and is molded with a transparent and moldable polymer such as polycarbonate, polystyrene, polyethylene, polymethylmethacrylate, or an ultraviolet curable resin. A method for producing a microscopic region scattering probe.