Method and system for raman, fluorescence, lithographic, stimulated emission and photochemical imaging beyond the diffraction limit

A method for stimulated fluorescence, absorption, fluorescence or Raman microscopy having resolution exceeding a diffraction limit, comprising the steps of:

• producing monochromatic coherent pump light pulses having a duration in a picosecond range, a first wavelength and a Gaussian beam profile;
• producing monochromatic coherent Stokes light pulses having a duration in a picosecond range, a second wavelength and a Gaussian beam profile, wherein the second wavelength is energetically spaced from the first wavelength by a vibrational energy state of the sample and a Gaussian beam profile, with a difference of photon energy corresponding to the first wavelength and photon energy corresponding to the second wavelength populate the vibrational energy state of the sample;
• producing monochromatic coherent interfering light pulses being phase-locked to the Stokes light pulses and having a duration in a picosecond range and a third wavelength energetically spaced from the second wavelength by a second vibrational energy state of the sample and an annular beam profile;
• producing monochromatic coherent actinic light pulses having at least one fourth wavelength and a Gaussian beam profile, wherein photon energy corresponding to the at least one fourth wavelength is substantially equal to an energy difference between the virtual energy state and a stable quantum state of the sample;
• combining the pump, Stokes, interfering and actinic light pulses into a pulsed overlapping light beam and focusing the overlapping light beam in a focal plane;
• and
• spectrally-resolved detecting radiation responsive to the overlapping light beam in the focal plane.

A method for exposing photoresist with a spatial resolution exceeding a diffraction limit, comprising the steps of:

• producing monochromatic coherent pump light pulses having a duration in a picosecond range and a first wavelength;
• producing monochromatic coherent Stokes light pulses having a duration in a picosecond range and a second wavelength, wherein the second wavelength is energetically spaced from the first wavelength by a vibrational energy state of the sample, with a difference of photon energy corresponding to the first wavelength and photon energy corresponding to the second wavelength populate the vibrational energy state of the sample;
• producing monochromatic coherent interfering light pulses being phase-locked to the Stokes light pulses and having a duration in a picosecond range and a third wavelength energetically spaced from the second wavelength by a second vibrational energy state of the sample;
• producing monochromatic coherent actinic light pulses having at least one fourth wavelength, wherein photon energy corresponding to the at least one fourth wavelength is substantially equal to an energy difference between the virtual energy state and a stable quantum state of the sample;
• combining the pump, Stokes and actinic light pulses into a pulsed overlapping light beam having a Gaussian beam profile for the pump, Stokes and actinic pulses and an annular beam profile for the interfering light pulses, illuminating with the overlapping light beam a first optical projection mask, and projecting an image of the first optical projection mask on the photoresist;
• and
• illuminating a second optical projection mask embodied as a phase mask with the interfering laser beam and projecting an image of the second optical projection mask on the photoresist;