scanning near-field microscopy scanning near-field thermal microscopy CHMO:0000126 near-field scanning thermal microscopy NSThM Microscopy where a thermocouple probe is positioned very close to the surface of the specimen (in the near-field). An image of the surface is obtained by mechanically moving the thermocouple probe in a raster scan of the specimen, line by line, and recording the surface–probe heat transfer as a function of position. A feedback loop is used to maintain a fixed relationship between the probe and surface during scanning. SNThM