Nano-Raman spectroscopy and surface nanostructuring

To satisfy the development of nanoscience and nanotechnology, techniques to characterize and fabricate nanostructures and nanodevices are in great demand. Laser, as a unique monochromatic and coherent light source, meets the needs because it exhibits the potential to reveal some vital information of the materials. However, the applications of laser technology to nanoscience and nanotechnology are facing a severe challenge: the spatial resolution cannot be further enhanced to achieve nanometer scales due to the optical diffraction limit associated with conventional optics. In response to this challenge, near-field optics has been emerging as a new scientific area to deal with optical phenomena at that scales. The objective of this dissertation is to explore the possibility and extend the capability of laser technology into the fabrication and characterization of nanostructures and nanodevices using near-field optics. With the aim of establishing a frame to this objective, our goals of this study are to develop novel optical characterization techniques and platforms with nanoscale resolutions, and to fabricate nanostructures using laser technology.