In this thesis we describe an enhancement to the Atomic force microscope (AFM) to simultaneously gather topographic features and spectroscopic information .Compared to the current state of the art of near-field excitation and far-field detection AFM imaging techniques our system uses a radical new approach near-field excitation and near-field detection. By placing the detector in the near-field we achieve high signal to noise and single molecular resolution.

The origin of our near-field detector signal is the image force gradient due to the interaction of the stimulated molecular dipole with its image on the metal probe. We designed and built an optical and electronic system to capture this signal and simultaneously image nano-scale surface topography and optical image force gradient.

By varying the wavelength of the excitation beam we measure the induced optical image force gradient spectra of molecules on surface. These spectra show good agreement with the absorption spectra of the bulk molecules measured by conventional absorption spectroscopy. We show that image force gradient is directly proportional to the optical absorption dipole strength.

Using Finite Element 3D electromagnetic simulations and using Lorentz model for the excited molecular dipole we showed that the image force gradient has a decay length of 1nm, making the theoretical resolution of this microscopy technique approximately 1 nm. This rapid decay was measured experimentally .This resolution was seen by the high contrasting spectroscopic images of molecules on the surface.

In follow on experiments this technique was extended to provide surface Raman spectroscopy and microscopy at molecular resolution. We create an image force gradient interaction through optical parametric down conversion between stimulated Raman excited molecules on a surface and a cantilevered nanometer scale probe brought very close to it. Spectroscopy and microscopy on clusters of molecules have been performed. Single molecules within such clusters are clearly resolved in the Raman micrographs. Raman spectra of amino acid Phenylalanine was obtained this the first time the Raman effect has been detected through a force interaction.