Paired circularly polarized heterodyne ellipsometer

Appl Opt. 2009 Feb 1;48(4):758-64. doi: 10.1364/ao.48.000758.

Abstract

We develop a paired circularly polarized heterodyne ellipsometer (PCPHE), in which a heterodyne interferometer based on a two-frequency circularly polarized laser beam is set up. It belongs to an amplitude-sensitive ellipsometer that is able to provide not only a wider dynamic range of polarization modulation frequency but also a higher detection sensitivity than that of a conventional photometric ellipsometer. A real-time and precise measurement of ellipsometric parameters, which demonstrated an accuracy of less than 1 nm on thickness measurement of SiO(2) thin film deposited on silicon substrate, can be applied with the PCPHE.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Equipment Design
  • Equipment Failure Analysis
  • Interferometry / instrumentation*
  • Interferometry / methods
  • Materials Testing / instrumentation*
  • Membranes, Artificial*
  • Nanotechnology / instrumentation*
  • Nanotechnology / methods
  • Refractometry / instrumentation*
  • Refractometry / methods
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sensitivity and Specificity
  • Silicon Dioxide / chemistry*

Substances

  • Membranes, Artificial
  • Silicon Dioxide