Near-field optical technology enables the limitations of conventional optics to be overcome.

Near-field light is "spilled" light that is created when light enters such a narrow space that it can't move. The near-field light produced in such a situation spills no more than tens of nanometers, and because of its very shortness, it can be used as a light source for observing the nano-sized world. Near-field optical microscopes are an example of technology that makes use of this phenomenon to view things at nano scale, but Canon is now working on the next step, the development of technology for "writing" with near-field light. This technology has tremendous potential for application to next-generation DVD and manufacture of semiconductor devices.