We perform direct local-field imaging of a plasmon-resonant gold nanoparticle pair separated by a gap of several nanometers using a scattering-type near-field optical microscope with a sharp silicon tip of atomic force microscope. The sharp tip allows the access for the nanogap and the high spatial resolution. Our results provide experimental evidence that the nanogap structure produces an opti...

We report the demonstration of a reflection microscope that operates at 13.2 nm wavelength with a spatial resolution of 55+/-3 nm. The microscope uses illumination from a tabletop extreme ultraviolet laser to acquire aerial images of photolithography masks with a 20 s exposure time. The modulation transfer function of the optical system was characterized.