Probing nanodefects in fused silica by near-field scanning optical microscopy
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, California 94550 (United States)
Nanodefects were artificially introduced into a fused silica surface by nanoindenting with a commercial atomic force microscope. The sample was illuminated in a total internal reflection configuration and evanescent waves were detected by a near-field scanning optical probe in the constant tip-sample separation mode. The observed contrast in optical images was attributed to the strain fields associated with the nanoindents. Thus the optical image directly maps out the strain distributions associated with these nanoindents. Optical images were taken at different polarizations of the incident light ({ital s} and {ital p}). Due to different field distributions near the sample surface for the two polarizations, strain distributions at different depths were probed. The spatial resolution of this technique was limited by the probe aperture size and detector sensitivity. This technique may be a useful tool to study laser-induced damage mechanisms in optical materials at the submicron scale.
- OSTI ID:
- 641597
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Applied Physics, Journal Name: Journal of Applied Physics Journal Issue: 6 Vol. 84; ISSN JAPIAU; ISSN 0021-8979
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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