Resolution of aplanatic solid immersion lens based microscopy

We study the resolution of a subsurface microscopy system based on the use of an aplanatic solid immersion lens. Resolution limits under various criteria are calculated theoretically as well as numerically. Images of combinations of dipoles of various orientations are considered. Both lateral and longitudinal resolutions are studied. The theoretical criteria are compared against the visually resolvable simulated images of the dipoles. The observations are explained explicitly through a detailed analysis of the dyadic Green's function. A new resolution criterion is also proposed, which provides a very accurate estimate of the resolution limits.