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Abstract

Disclosed is a measuring apparatus for a physical phenomenon by photoexcitation, in particular a delay time modulated and time-resolved, scanning probe microscope apparatus providing an ultimate resolution both temporal and spatial. The apparatus comprises an ultrashort laser pulse generator (2); a delay time modulating circuit (6) which splits an ultrashort laser pulse (3) produced by the ultrashort laser pulse generator (2) into two and which also modulates a delay time td between the two ultrashort laser pulses (4 and 5) with a frequency (ω); a scanning probe microscope (7); and a lock-in detection unit (8) which performs lock-in detection with the delay time modulation frequency (ω) of a probe signal (11) from the scanning probe microscope (7). It can detect the delay time dependency of the probe signal (11) as its differential coefficient to the delay time, with no substantial influence from fluctuations in the intensity of ultrashort laser pulses (3) while preventing the probe apex (19) from thermal expansion and shrinkage by repeated irradiation with ultrashort laser pulses (3). A photoexcited physical phenomenon dependent on a delay time between ultrashort laser pulses can thus be measured at a temporal resolution in the order of femtoseconds and at a spatial resolution in the order of angstroms.

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