  Josephson junctions were photogenerated in underdoped thin films of the
YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{6+x}$ family using a near-field scanning optical microscope.
The observation of the Josephson effect for separations as large as 100 nm
between two wires indicates the existence of an anomalously large proximity
effect and show that the underdoped insulating material in the gap of the
junction is readily perturbed into the superconducting state. The critical
current of the junctions was found to be consistent with the conventional
Josephson relationship. This result constrains the applicability of SO(5)
theory to explain the phase diagram of high critical temperature
superconductors.
