Near-field optical microscopy with a nanodiamond-based single photon tip

摘要

We introduce a point-like scanning single-photon source that operates at roomtemperature and offers an exceptional photostability (no blinking, nobleaching). This is obtained by grafting in a controlled way a diamondnanocrystal (size around 20 nm) with single nitrogen-vacancy color-centeroccupancy at the apex of an optical probe. As an application, we image metallicnanostructures in the near-field, thereby achieving a near-field scanningsingle-photon microscopy working at room temperature on the long term. Our workmay be of importance to various emerging fields of nanoscience where anaccurate positioning of a quantum emitter is required such as for examplequantum plasmonics.