Kerr-rotation imaging in scanning near-field optical microscopy using a modified Sagnac interferometer

A scanning near-field optical microscope is combined with a modified Sagnac interferometer to generate high-resolution magnetic contrast images of a magneto-optical disk (MOD) in reflection. The interferometer acts as a magnetic sensor to determine the Kerr rotation of reflected circularly polarized...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Applied physics letters 1998-07, Vol.73 (4), p.538-540
Main Authors: Petersen, B. L., Bauer, A., Meyer, G., Crecelius, T., Kaindl, G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:A scanning near-field optical microscope is combined with a modified Sagnac interferometer to generate high-resolution magnetic contrast images of a magneto-optical disk (MOD) in reflection. The interferometer acts as a magnetic sensor to determine the Kerr rotation of reflected circularly polarized light. A separate shear-force sample topography is obtained simultaneously with the optical. This technique allows successful magnetic imaging of samples with complicated surface topographies, as demonstrated with the MOD. For these initial measurements, the resolution with nonmetal-coated fiber tips is 300 nm, and the magnetic phase sensitivity is 1 mrad.
ISSN:0003-6951
1077-3118
DOI:10.1063/1.121925