Near-field optical probe and scanning near-field optical microscope

摘要

Realized are a near-field optical probe capable of illuminating or/and detecting near-field light great in intensity and acquiring an optical image great in S/N ratio, and a manufacturing method and near-field optical apparatus. Accordingly, a near-field optical probe comprises a cantilever in a cantilever form, a base for supporting the cantilever, a tip in a weight form formed on the cantilever, a microscopic aperture formed in an end of the tip, and a shade film formed on a surface of the cantilever opposite to the base and on area other than the microscopic aperture of the tip. The tip and the cantilever are formed of a transparent material high in transmissivity relative to a wavelength of light to be generated and/or detected by the microscopic aperture, and the tip is structurally filled with the transparent material.