A system for inspecting a surface of a specimen includes a normal incidence phase-shifted deflectometry (PSD) sensor including an imaging sensor, a beam splitter, and an imaging optic arranged between the imaging sensor and the beam splitter. The illumination source illuminates the specimen with a light pattern and is arranged perpendicular to the surface of the specimen. The imaging sensor captures the light pattern reflected from the surface of the specimen in a sensor image. The beam splitter directs a first portion of the light from the illumination source to the optical absorber, a second portion of the light from the illumination source to the surface of the specimen, and the light pattern reflected from the surface of the specimen to the imaging sensor. A data processing apparatus in communication with the normal incidence PSD sensor determines properties of the surface of the specimen based on the sensor image.