Nanoscale imaging by cylindrical microstructure-assisted microscopy

Abstract Conventional optical microscopes have a limit in resolution by a diffraction of light. Here, we propose cylindrical microstructures to assist in resolving nanoscale imaging. The cylindrical microstructures with diameters of 3, 5, 7, and 9 μm were produced by proton beam writing in poly(methyl methacrylate) on nanopatterns of commercial Blu-ray discs. Accordingly, the Blu-ray disc nanopatterns were imaged through cylindrical microstructures using a laser confocal microscope to determine the cylindrical microstructure performances for assisting in nanoimaging. The results showed that the smaller diameter performed better quality of imaging (i.e., contrast and sharp edge) for an objective lens of 20× with a numerical aperture of 0.6. The quality of the imaging was improved with a higher magnification.