Near-field microscopy through a SiC superlens.

The wave nature of light limits the spatial resolution in classical microscopy to about half of the illumination wavelength. Recently, a new approach capable of achieving subwavelength spatial resolution, called superlensing, was invented, challenging the already established method of scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM). We combine the advantages of both techniques and demonstrate a novel imaging system where the objects no longer need to be in close proximity to a near-field probe, allowing for optical near-field microscopy of subsurface objects at sub-wavelength-scale lateral resolution.