Surface profile measurement method and device used therein

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9631924-B2
Application number	US-201414890844-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 10, 2014
Priority date	May 14, 2013
Publication date	Apr 25, 2017
Grant date	Apr 25, 2017

Abstract

To provide a technique that can measure a surface profile of any test object in a nondestructive manner and noncontact manner, highly accurately, and in a wide tilt angle dynamic range. In white light interference method using a dual beam interferometer, the technique is configured to be capable of changing a surface orientation of a standard plane with respect to an incident optical axis on the standard plane, acquires, while relatively changing the surface orientation of the standard plane with respect to a local surface orientation in any position on a test surface, a plurality of interferograms generated by interference of reflected light from the test surface and reflected light from the standard plane, and calculates the local surface orientation on the test surface from the interferograms to thereby measure a surface profile of the test surface.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A surface profile measurement method for comparing a test surface and a standard plane to thereby measure both of a surface height and a surface orientation of the test surface in any position on the test surface, the surface profile measurement method being configured to capable of determining, only with measurement data in one position on the test surface, both of the surface height and the surface orientation without requiring to calculate the surface height and the surface orientation from measurement data in two or more positions on the test surface and by changing the standard plane compared with the test surface.

2. A surface profile measurement method for dividing an illumination light beam emitted from a light source continuously or discretely having a predetermined wavelength bandwidth or a light source for emitting monochromatic light into two light beams and making the light beams incident on a test surface and a standard plane, and causing a reflected light beam from the test surface and a reflected light beam from the standard plane to interfere in an interferometer to measure a surface profile of the test surface, the surface profile measurement method being configured to be capable of changing a surface orientation in the illumination light beam incident position on the standard plane and configured to be capable of measuring a local surface orientation of the test surface in one or a plurality of positions on the test surface.

3. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 2 , wherein the surface orientation in the illumination light beam incident position on the standard plane can be changed by configuring the surface profile measurement method to be capable of, using a plane mirror as the standard plane, inclining or rotating the surface orientation of the standard plane in two axial directions orthogonal to each other and both orthogonal to an optical axis.

4. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 2 , wherein the surface orientation in the illumination light beam incident position on the standard plane can be changed by using, as the standard plane, a curved surface mirror, a local surface orientation of a reflective surface of which continuously or discretely changes in two axial directions orthogonal to each other and both orthogonal to an optical axis, and translating the entire standard plane in the two axial directions orthogonal to the optical axis.

5. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 2 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to measure a local surface orientation of the test surface by changing the surface orientation of the standard plane relatively to a local surface orientation in any position on the test surface and calculating a surface orientation of the standard plane at time when the local surface orientation on the test surface and a surface orientation in the illumination light beam incident position on the standard plane are equal.

6. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 5 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to determine that, when an interference contrast is maximized in an interferogram obtained by interference of a reflected light beam from the test surface and a reflected light beam from the standard plane, the local surface orientation on the test surface and the surface orientation of the standard plane are equal.

7. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 6 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to calculate a relative standard deviation from interference intensity data configuring the interferogram and use the relative standard deviation as the interference contrast.

8. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 6 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to, in calculating a surface orientation of the standard plane at the time when the interference contrast is maximized, instead of finding a maximum value out of interference contrasts, which are measured by changing the surface orientation continuously or discretely at a sufficiently fine pitch, and calculating the surface orientation corresponding to the maximum value, match a predetermined interference contrast distribution function with a plurality of interference contrast values, which are measured by roughly discretely changing the surface orientation, using a surface orientation corresponding to the maximum value of the interference contrast as an unknown number and calculate the surface orientation as a surface orientation at time when the interference contrast distribution function matches the interference contrast value most.

9. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 2 , wherein, when a Z axis is plotted in an illumination optical axis direction with respect to the test surface and a value of a Z coordinate of the test surface is referred to as height of the test surface, the surface profile measurement method includes a function of obtaining, from surface orientation data measured in two or more positions on the test surface, surface height calculation values of the test surface in the positions according to integration processing.

10. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 2 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to measure both of a local surface orientation and height of the test surface using an interferogram obtained in any position on the test surface.

11. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 10 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to irradiate, as the illumination light beam, illumination light continuously or discretely having a predetermined wavelength bandwidth on the test surface and the standard plane.

12. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 10 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to include, as the illumination light beam, a light source continuously or discretely having a predetermined wavelength bandwidth for measuring the height and a monochromatic light source for measuring the local surface orientation and simultaneously or sequentially irradiate illumination lights from the light sources on the test surface and the standard plane.

13. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 1 , wherein the surface profile measurement method includes a sample moving stage for moving a position of a sample having the test surface in order to change a measurement position on the test surface, includes a function of obtaining, from surface orientation data measured in two or more positions on the test surface, surface height calculation values in the positions according to integration processing, and includes a function of comparing surface heights measured in the positions and the surface height calculation values.

14. The surface profile measurement method according to claim 13 , wherein the surface profile measurement method is configured to be capable of obtaining, on the basis of a result obtained by comparing the surface heights measured in the positions and the surface height calculation values, a height fluctuation distribution of the entire sample involved in movement of the sample moving stage.

15. A surface profile measurement device comprising:
a light source continuously or discretely having a predetermined wavelength bandwidth;
an interferometer including a sample moving stage configured to divide, with a beam splitter, an illumination light beam into a measurement light beam and a reference light beam, reciprocatingly mov

Assignees

• Hitachi High Tech Corp

Inventors

• Matsui Shigeru
• ONODA Yugo

Classifications

• G01B9/02068

  Auto-alignment of optical elements · CPC title

• G01B9/02087

  Combining two or more images of the same region · CPC title

• G01B9/0209

  Low-coherence interferometers · CPC title

• G01B11/26

  for measuring angles or tapers; for testing the alignment of axes · CPC title

• G01B11/0608

  Height gauges · CPC title