1. Near-Field Optical Microscope with an Integrated Nanometer-Sized Light Emitting Diode John X.J. Zhang (P.I.) & Kazunori Hoshino Department of Biomedical Engineering The University of Texas at Austin

2. SPM up close  Scanning probe microscopy (SPM) Atomic force (AFM) “feels” surfaces Near-field scanning optical (NSOM) “sees” surfaces Molecular-scale sensitivity  Polymers, cell surface components, DNAs Topology, mechanics, optical properties, biochemistry

3. Sharpening the “senses”  Combine “touch” and “vision”  Better acuity  Seeing in multiple colors

4. Applications and markets  Applications Research Engineering QC metrology  Markets Semiconductors Data storage Biological research Drug discovery Thin films

5. Problem  Near-field scanning optical microscope (NSOM) belongs to scanning microscopes. NSOM collects light - different from STM/AFM Measures nanoscopic optical properties  Probe is still made by hand!  Difficult to fabricate a densely integrated array of a fiber scanning probe. The scanning array will be bulky. Each probe will require an external light source. Photo: Typical NSOM probe http://physics.nist.gov/Divisions/Div844/facilities/nsom/nsom.htm

6. Solution  Integration of nanoscale light source on scanning probe A nanoscale light emitting diode (LED) on tip of a MEMS probe The probe tip itself emits light

7. Benefits  Enhanced sub-diffraction-limit resolution Aperture dimensions: ~ 5 nm Self-illuminating probe  All made by silicon fabrication process Mass production at low cost Ready to integrate other silicon/MEMS functional elements  Thin film (piezoresistive/piezoelectric) force sensors, MEMS actuators and transistor circuitry

8. MEMS probe fabrication

9. Probe tip features

10. Tip gap for nano LED

11. Nano LED trapping

12. Nano LED formation

13. Nano LED light source

14. Availability  Prototype devices ready to be tested on a NSOM or AFM set-up.  Customization on device specifications to fit the applications

15. Next steps  Current status Development stage Industry partners needed  Next steps to commercialization Characterization and design optimization Investment and manufacturing