Magnetic force microscopy of Abrikosov vortices

Magnetostatic interaction between the tip of a magnetic force microscope (MFM) and an Abrikosov vortex line is theoretically analysed in isotropic superconductors and in high-T_c materials with the magnetic field oriented along the c axis. The predicted forces are of the order of 10^-9-10^-10 N suggesting that it is possible to observe the distribution of the magnetic field of a single vortex by existing MFM techniques. The influence of the surrounding vortex lattice on measurements is also discussed.