Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscopy of van der Waals Materials

The study examines the effectiveness of using scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy (s-SNOM) for investigating the optical properties of layered van der Waals materials. The principles of the method, its advantages, and recent advancements in the study of highly refractive anisotropic van der Waals materials, as well as the development of photonic devices based on them, are discussed in detail. The results of investigating the waveguide characteristics of CdPS₃ crystals in the telecommunication wavelength range using scattering-type scanning near-field optical microscopy are presented.