LMI Seminar: Atomically resolved optical spectroscopy using a scanning-tunneling microscope

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Abstract:

I will talk about an intriguing method of microscopy that combines the atomic-scale resolution of a scanning-tunneling microscope (STM) with optics. This method is taking advantage of phenomena including the optical Stark shift and plasmonic Purcell effect to reveal excited-state properties of nanoscale samples with unprecedented spatial resolution. 

In particular, I will talk about the mechanism of STM-induced luminescence applied to dye molecules and show how this technique allows one to obtain spectroscopic information and optical imaging of nanoscale samples with almost atomic-scale precision. Finally, I will show some latest results that include the nanoscale optical detection of molecular tautomerization, or detection of localized excitons in graphene nanoribbons.