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arXiv · 0910.5593

Resolution and enhancement in nanoantenna-based fluorescence microscopy

Hadi Eghlidi·Kwang Geol Lee·Xue-Wen Chen·Stephan Goetzinger·Vahid Sandoghdar
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Abstract

Single gold nanoparticles can act as nanoantennas for enhancing the fluorescence of emitters in their near-fields. Here we present experimental and theoretical studies of scanning antenna-based fluorescence microscopy as a function of the diameter of the gold nanoparticle. We examine the interplay between fluorescence enhancement and spatial resolution and discuss the requirements for deciphering single molecules in a dense sample. Resolutions better than 20 nm and fluorescence enhancement up to 30 times are demonstrated experimentally. By accounting for the tip shaft and the sample interface in finite-difference time-domain calculations, we explain why the measured fluorescence enhancements are higher in the presence of an interface than the values predicted for a homogeneous environment.

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Hadi Eghlidi, Kwang Geol Lee, Xue-Wen Chen, Stephan Goetzinger, Vahid Sandoghdar. 2009-10-29. Resolution and enhancement in nanoantenna-based fluorescence microscopy. https://doi.org/10.1021/nl902183y

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