Effect of polarization on a solid immersion lens of arbitrary thickness.

A solid immersion lens can be applied for high-resolution subsurface analysis of integrated circuits and other physical systems. We present a thorough analysis of the focal field distribution of a solid immersion lens system of arbitrary thickness. Cases of linearly and radially polarized illumination are examined and accurate expressions derived for the electric field in the image space. The effect of the spherical interface on both transverse and axial intensity profiles is analyzed. The performance and practicality of configurations deviating from the hemispherical and aplanatic cases are studied. The results show that optimal resolution is obtained at focal positions between the hemispherical and aplanatic points when radially polarized illumination is applied.