Short-length prototypes of coated conductors consisting of YBa2Cu3O7-x/yttrium-stabilized zirconia (YBCO/YSZ) bilayers have been fabricated by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) onto biaxially textured NiFe substrates. Scanning probe microscopy has been used for a detailed investigation of local sample properties. In particular, near-field scanning optical microscopy has been exploited to reconstruct a high resolution map of the surface optical scattering properties, which can be related to fluctuations of oxygen stoichiometry at the grain space scale. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.