Construction of a near-field spectrum analysis system using bent tapered fiber probes

Abstract

We take advantage of a combination of laser heating and pulling and electric arc bending to fabricate bent tapered fiber probes. The bent angles can be varied from 30 degrees to 70 degrees and tip diameters fall within a few tens of nanometers. These bent fiber probes can easily be adapted into any dynamic mode atomic force microscope. By proper manipulation of the bent angles, a spatial resolution of up to 60 nm is achievable. After coating the bent fiber probes with a thin layer of Pt/Pd film by ion sputtering, the transmission efficiency is measured to be around 10(-5), which is applicable for near-field spectrum analysis experiment. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.