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Tiny ants I find are more effected by the normal movement deterrents we commonly use. By coating the top inch or two with Fluron (sp?) Vegetable shortening (what I use) or cooking oil in general (I think) it deters the ants from walking past. My colony of Monomoriom is kept in a Tupperware container and the vegetable shortening holds them back perfectly. The colony itself nests in a wide test tube with cotton holding water back in it to provide humidity. Their set up is completely dirt less.
If you are more interested in watching tunnels then you could try using an empty peanut butter jar with a soda can in the middle (so as to take up space) and then fill it with dirt. Since the ants can't dig in the middle they are forced to nest on the outer edges of the can. From there it should either be placed in a Terarium, Tupperware container, or have some sort of feeding chamber attached by a tube.
antcam.com/ features other ways to build your own ant farms or I believe he also sells them.
www.antstore.net/ (Click shop) In my opinion antstore sells the best ant farms around but most of their designs are simple enough that they can be copied with a little trouble. Most hardware stores sell Plexy glass and some even cut it for you. The problems are they're located on another continent, they sell ants (which is frowned upon here), and assuming you are in America it's at least $55 shipping and handling.
Hope this helps.