Sarfus

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Sarfus is an optical quantitative imaging technique based on the association of:

• an upright or inverted optical microscope in crossed polarization configuration and
• specific supporting plates – called surfs – on which the sample to observe is deposited.

Sarfus visualization is based on the perfect control of the reflection properties of polarized light on a surface, which leads to an increase in the axial sensitivity of optical microscope by a factor of around 100 without reducing its lateral resolution. Thus this new technique increases the sensitivity of standard optical microscope to a point that it becomes possible to directly visualize thin films (down to 0.3 micrometer) and isolated nano-objects in real-time, be it in air or in water.