Imaging current paths in complex conductors by scanning fluorescence microscopy

摘要

Using a fluorescence-based scanning thermal microscope, we observed the Joule heating of a complex circuit made of submicron-wide rectangular stripes interconnected between them. The thermal images reveal the presence of localized hot spots which allow to visualize the main current paths in the networks. By suppressing a single elementary conductive element in the device, we observed a different hot spot repartition showing the new electrical current paths. The experimental results are in good agreement with simulations and open the way to directly characterize the electrical and thermal behaviour of complex devices and metal-dielectric composites.