Vibration of scanning near-field optical microscope probe with laser-induced thermal effect using Timoshenko beam theory

The Timoshenko beam theory, including the effects of rotary inertia and shear deformation, is used to analyze the resonant frequency of lateral vibration of scanning near-field optical microscope (SNOM) tapered probe with a laser-induced thermal effect. In the analysis, the thermal effect can be considered as an axial force and is dependent of temperature distribution of the probe. The Rayleigh–Ritz method is used to solve the vibration problem of the probe. According to the analysis, the frequencies of the first three vibration modes increase when the thermal effect is taken into account. The effects of shear deformation and rotary inertia on the frequency ratio of a Timoshenko beam to an Euler beam increase when the mode number increases and the contact stiffness decreases. In addition, the frequency of mode 1 increases with increasing taper angle and coating thickness of the probe. Comparison of the frequency of a SNOM probe coated with Al, Ag, or Au, the highest is with Al coating, and the lowest is with Au coating.