Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Theoretical foundations
- 3 Propagation and focusing of optical fields
- 4 Spatial resolution and position accuracy
- 5 Nanoscale optical microscopy
- 6 Near-field optical probes
- 7 Probe–sample distance control
- 8 Light emission and optical interactions in nanoscale environments
- 9 Quantum emitters
- 10 Dipole emission near planar interfaces
- 11 Photonic crystals and resonators
- 12 Surface plasmons
- 13 Forces in confined fields
- 14 Fluctuation-induced interactions
- 15 Theoretical methods in nano-optics
- Appendix A Semianalytical derivation of the atomic polarizability
- Appendix B Spontaneous emission in the weak coupling regime
- Appendix C Fields of a dipole near a layered substrate
- Appendix D Far-field Green's functions
- Index
1 - Introduction
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 June 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Theoretical foundations
- 3 Propagation and focusing of optical fields
- 4 Spatial resolution and position accuracy
- 5 Nanoscale optical microscopy
- 6 Near-field optical probes
- 7 Probe–sample distance control
- 8 Light emission and optical interactions in nanoscale environments
- 9 Quantum emitters
- 10 Dipole emission near planar interfaces
- 11 Photonic crystals and resonators
- 12 Surface plasmons
- 13 Forces in confined fields
- 14 Fluctuation-induced interactions
- 15 Theoretical methods in nano-optics
- Appendix A Semianalytical derivation of the atomic polarizability
- Appendix B Spontaneous emission in the weak coupling regime
- Appendix C Fields of a dipole near a layered substrate
- Appendix D Far-field Green's functions
- Index
Summary
In the history of science, the first applications of optical microscopes and telescopes to investigate nature mark the beginning of new eras. Galileo Galilei used a telescope to see for the first time craters and mountains on a celestial body, the Moon, and also discovered the four largest satellites of Jupiter. With this he opened the field of astronomy. Robert Hooke and Antony van Leeuwenhoek used early optical microscopes to observe certain features of plant tissue that were called “cells”, and to observe microscopic organisms, such as bacteria and protozoans, thus marking the beginning of biology. The newly developed instrumentation enabled the observation of fascinating phenomena not directly accessible to human senses. Naturally, the question was raised whether the observed structures not detectable within the range of normal vision should be accepted as reality at all. Today, we have accepted that, in modern physics, scientific proofs are verified by indirect measurements, and that the underlying laws have often been established on the basis of indirect observations. It seems that as modern science progresses it withholds more and more findings from our natural senses. In this context, the use of optical instrumentation excels among ways to study nature. This is due to the fact that because of our ability to perceive electromagnetic waves at optical frequencies our brain is used to the interpretation of phenomena associated with light, even if the structures that are observed are magnified thousandfold.
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- Principles of Nano-Optics , pp. 1 - 12Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2006
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