Imaging artifacts of dielectric specimens in transmission mode near-field scanning optical microscopy

Uncertainty in tip morphology of aluminum coated, fiber-optic near-field probes, and the large difference between the physical probe diameter and (smaller) optical diameter, lead to serious imaging artifacts in transmission mode near-field microscopy. Various dielectric materials of different topographies have been studied to develop an understanding of normal and anomalous contrast modes mainly characterized by topographically induced contrast.