Abstract
Recent studies have reported that an epsilon-near-zero (ENZ) thin slab between a specimen and a substrate contributes to enhancing the spatial resolution of the optical system. Here, we investigate the ENZ thickness dependence of the resolution enhancement. By employing the edge response function, we directly measure the resolution of an optical system when imaging the sharp edge of a metal film. We found that the optimum ENZ slab thickness was 700 nm and the achieved resolution was 11 μm at a wavelength of 8 μm. Owing to the enhanced resolution by ENZ slab, we successfully imaged subwavelength slit arrays.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
G. R. Fowles, Introduction to Modern Optics (Dover Publications, Inc., New York 1989).
M. Switkes and M. Rothschild, MOEMS 1, 225 (2002).
L. Novotny and B. Hecht, Principles of Nano-optics (Cambridge University Press, London, 2006).
S. M. Mansfield and G. S. Kino, Appl. Phys. Lett. 57, 2615 (1990).
Q. Wu, G. D. Feke, R. D. Grober and L. P. Ghislain, Appl. Phys. Lett. 75, 4064 (1999).
S. B. Ippolito, B. B. Goldberg, and M. S. Ünlü, Appl. Phys. Lett. 78, 4071 (2001).
A. Yurt, A. Uyar, T. B. Cilingiroglu, B. B. Goldberg and M. S. Ünlü, Opt. Express 22, 7422 (2014).
J. S. Kyoung, M. A. Seo, H. R. Park, K. J. Ahn and D. S. Kim, Opt. Commun. 283, 4907 (2010).
J. Kyoung, D. J. Park, S. J. Byun, J. Lee, S. B. Choi, S. Park and S. W. Hwang, Opt. Express 22, 31875 (2014).
M. Silveirinha and N. Engheta, Phys. Rev. Lett. 97, 157403 (2006).
A. Alù, F. Bilotti, N. Engheta and L. Vegni, IEEE Trans. Antennas. Propag. 54, 1632 (2006).
A. Alù, M. G. Silveirinha, A. Salandrino and N. Engheta, Phys. Rev. B 75, 155410 (2007).
S. W. Smith, The Scientist & Engineer’s Guide to Digital Signal Processing (California Technical Publishing, San Diego, CA 1997).
E. J. R. Vesseur, T. Coenen, H. Caglayan, N. Engheta and A. Polman, Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 013902 (2013).
R. Maas, J. Parsons, N. Engheta and A. Polman, Nat. Photon. 7, 907 (2013).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Jang, YR., Choi, S.B., Park, D.J. et al. Thickness-dependent enhancement of the optical resolution in the vicinity of an epsilon-near-zero slab. Journal of the Korean Physical Society 69, 268–271 (2016). https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.69.268
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3938/jkps.69.268