公开(公告)号：JP2001249067A

公开(公告)日：2001-09-14

申请号：JP2001005529

申请日：2001-01-12

Applicant: IBM

Inventor： DON CHEN ,  JAMES M HAMMOND ,  KENNETH G ROSELER

IPC: G01B21/20 ,  G01B21/22 ,  G01B21/30 ,  G01Q10/06 ,  G01Q60/24 ,  G01Q60/32 ,  G01Q60/38 ,  G01N13/16

Abstract: PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a device and method for performing contour scanning by use of a scanning probe microscope. SOLUTION: A scanning probe tip 130 mounted to a cantilever 132 is oscillated at an exciting frequency in the Z-direction and simultaneously dithered at a dithering frequency so as to draw a circular pattern in a plane vertical to the Z-direction. The dithering frequency is far lower than the exciting frequency. As the probe tip approaches a sidewall 153 on the surface of a sample 135, the oscillation of the probe tip in the Z-direction is modulated at the dithering frequency. A phase angle θ between the modulation and one signal to drive the probe tip in a circular pattern is used to determine the angle of a normal 190 from the side wall 153 to the center of the circular pattern. As a direction to be applied is locally specified by a tangential line vertical to the normal 190, it is possible to make the probe tip scan along the contour line of the sidewall 153.