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White-light ellipsometer with geometric phase shifter.

Lionel R Watkins1, Maxime Derbois

  • 1Department of Physics, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand. l.watkins@auckland.ac.nz

Applied Optics
|August 4, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

A new spectroscopic ellipsometer utilizes a geometric phase shifter and white light for precise film thickness measurements. This instrument accurately determines silicon dioxide film thicknesses, matching commercial ellipsometer results.

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Area of Science:

  • Optical Physics
  • Materials Science
  • Spectroscopy

Background:

  • Spectroscopic ellipsometry is a powerful non-destructive technique for thin film characterization.
  • Traditional ellipsometers can be complex and expensive.
  • Accurate measurement of thin film properties is crucial in semiconductor manufacturing and optical coatings.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To present a simplified spectroscopic ellipsometer design.
  • To demonstrate accurate thin film thickness measurements using the new instrument.
  • To address and mitigate errors associated with non-ideal optical components.

Main Methods:

  • Development of a spectroscopic ellipsometer employing a geometric phase shifter and a white-light source.
  • Simultaneous acquisition of phase-stepped intensities across a wavelength range (450-850 nm).
  • Calculation of ellipsometric angles (ψ and Δ) from recorded intensities.
  • Optimization of incident light azimuth to minimize errors from the achromatic quarter-wave plate.

Main Results:

  • The developed ellipsometer successfully measures phase-stepped intensities and calculates ψ and Δ simultaneously.
  • Errors in Δ were minimized by adjusting the incident light azimuth.
  • Accurate film thicknesses for two silicon dioxide (SiO2) films (1000.6±0.1 Å and 20.6±0.1 Å) were obtained.
  • Results showed excellent agreement with measurements from a commercial ellipsometer.

Conclusions:

  • The described spectroscopic ellipsometer offers a simple yet effective method for thin film analysis.
  • The instrument provides high accuracy comparable to commercial systems.
  • This simplified design has potential for broader application in optical metrology and materials characterization.