Plasmonics-based spatially activated light microscopy for super-resolution imaging of molecular fluorescence

In this Letter, we explore plasmonics-based spatially activated light microscopy [PSALM] for sub-diffraction-limited imaging of biomolecules. PSALM is based on the spatially switched activation of local amplified electromagnetic hot spots under multiple light incidence conditions. The hot spots are associated with surface plasmons that are excited and localized by surface nanostructures. The feasibility of the concept was demonstrated by imaging fluorescent nanobeads on a two-dimensional gold nanograting of a 100-nm-wide grating ridge, the size of which is the measure of the imaging resolution. The result confirms the performance of PSALM for imaging nanobeads at a resolution below the conventional diffraction limit.