Abstract

The effect of modulation caused by a microsphere resonator is experimentally investigated with a model system consisting of a microsphere resonator and a plane substrate. We used total internal reflection microscopy (TIRM), which is a combination of conventional optical microscopy and the total internal reflection method, and observed the intensity distribution under the resonator in the evanescent-wave incidence condition. The TIRM patterns drastically change when the wavelength of the incident beam is scanned across a resonance. The response of the system is discussed on the basis of a recent proposal of traveling-wave resonance.

© 1999 Optical Society of America

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