Theoretical and experimental characterization of a near-field scanning microwave (NSMM)

W. Charles Symons, Keith W. Whites, Robert A. Lodder

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

27 Scopus citations

Abstract

An important aspect to understanding near-field optics and imaging involves the electromagnetic scattering characteristics of objects illuminated by the near field of a sub-wavelength-sized aperture. This paper addresses one particular application of near-field optics: a transmission-mode near-field scanning microscope (NSM). Specifically, some peculiar phenomena are investigated including a near-field focusing effect, as well as an impedance-based image-shape effect. To this end, we first describe the physical attributes of an NSM and then present two computational models we use to characterize this instrument. Both moment-method and finite-difference time-domain models are discussed. These two models are applied to the analysis of the NSM for various configurations and compared to other theoretical and experimental results. Finally, the construction of an X-band NSM is described-which we label a near-field scanning microwave microscope-and the experimental near-field imaging measurements are compared with our numerical predictions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)91-99
Number of pages9
JournalIEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques
Volume51
Issue number1 I
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2003

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Manuscript received June 18, 2001; revised January 25, 2002. This work was supported by the University of Kentucky Medical Center Research Fund, by the University of Kentucky Center for Computational Sciences, and by the National Science Foundation under the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award ECS-9624486.

Funding

Manuscript received June 18, 2001; revised January 25, 2002. This work was supported by the University of Kentucky Medical Center Research Fund, by the University of Kentucky Center for Computational Sciences, and by the National Science Foundation under the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award ECS-9624486.

FundersFunder number
University of Kentucky Medical Center Research Fund
U.S. Department of Energy Chinese Academy of Sciences Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Project Oak Ridge National Laboratory Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment National Science Foundation National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center National Natural Science Foundation of ChinaECS-9624486
U.S. Department of Energy Chinese Academy of Sciences Guangzhou Municipal Science and Technology Project Oak Ridge National Laboratory Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment National Science Foundation National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center National Natural Science Foundation of China
University of Kentucky Information Technology Department and Center for Computational Sciences

    Keywords

    • Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method
    • Moment method (MM)
    • Near-field imaging
    • Near-field scanning microscopy
    • Near-field scanning microwave microscope (NSMM)
    • Near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM)
    • Thin wires

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Radiation
    • Condensed Matter Physics
    • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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