公开(公告)号：US20230060883A1

公开(公告)日：2023-03-02

申请号：US17798574

申请日：2020-03-31

Applicant: Hitachi High-Tech Corporation

Inventor： Takeru UTSUGI ,  Toshifumi HONDA ,  Andreas KARSAKLIAN DAL BOSCO ,  Tomoto KAWAMURA ,  Kenshiro OHTSUBO

IPC: G01N21/47 ,  G01N21/88 ,  G01N21/95 ,  G01N21/956

Abstract: A defect inspection apparatus includes a first objective lens having an optical axis is perpendicular to a wafer mounting surface of the stage, a second objective lens having an optical axis forms a predetermined acute angle with respect to the wafer mounting surface of the stage, and a dichroic mirror which reflects light having a first wavelength and transmits or reflects light having a second wavelength. Emitted light of a first optical path 111 from a first light source which is reflected from or transmitted through the dichroic mirror and first emitted light and second emitted light polarized and separated from a second light source which are transmitted through or reflected from the dichroic mirror are incident on the first objective lens, and emitted light of a second optical path from the first light source is incident on the second objective lens.

公开(公告)号：US20250012732A1

公开(公告)日：2025-01-09

申请号：US18709996

申请日：2022-01-12

Applicant: Hitachi High-Tech Corporation

Inventor： Toshifumi HONDA ,  Takeru UTSUGI ,  Masato ISHIZUKA ,  Ryuji UKAI

IPC: G01N21/88 ,  G01N21/956

Abstract: A surface inspection apparatus includes a differential interference contrast detection system. Illumination light is emitted to positions deviated by a predetermined shear amount as two illumination spots having different phases. Light is generated in first and second polarization directions different from each other from interference light obtained by interfering reflected light of the two illumination spots from a surface of a sample. Light in the first and second polarization directions is converted to generate first and second interference signals. A signal processing device is configured to process the first and second interference signals, and the first and second polarization directions of the light generated by the differential interference contrast detection system are set such that an intensity of the first interference signal and an intensity of the second interference signal are the same at an operation point at which there is no phase difference between the two illumination spots.

公开(公告)号：US20240280483A1

公开(公告)日：2024-08-22

申请号：US18571624

申请日：2021-07-14

Applicant: Hitachi High-Tech Corporation

Inventor： Takeru UTSUGI ,  Toshifumi HONDA ,  Kenshiro OHTSUBO

IPC: G01N21/45 ,  G01N21/88 ,  G01N21/95

CPC classification number: G01N21/45 ,  G01N21/8806 ,  G01N21/9501 ,  G01N2021/8848 ,  G01N2201/121

Abstract: Provided is a technique capable of reducing an influence of an inter-beam phase difference unrelated to a defect and accurately detecting even a defect having a low aspect ratio by a defect inspection device using differential interference contrast. To achieve the above purpose, provided is the defect inspection device using differential interference contrast that inspects a specimen using light. The defect inspection device includes: a light source configured to emit a light beam; a polarized light separation element configured to split the light beam into a first beam and a second beam which are polarized and orthogonal to each other; a sensor configured to detect a signal from the first beam and the second beam reflected from the specimen; and a processing processor configured to process the signal detected by the sensor. The processing processor uses a signal string obtained based on information around a measured point to be measured on the specimen to correct a measured signal at the measured point.

公开(公告)号：US20240159520A1

公开(公告)日：2024-05-16

申请号：US18284774

申请日：2021-04-06

Applicant: HITACHI HIGH-TECH CORPORATION

Inventor： Toshifumi HONDA ,  Takeru UTSUGI

IPC: G01B11/24 ,  G01N21/95

CPC classification number: G01B11/2441 ,  G01N21/9505

Abstract: A defect inspection apparatus that includes a differential interference contrast illumination system that irradiates a sample surface with an illumination spot set composed of two polarized illumination spots that have different phases at a predetermined wavelength and that are offset by a predetermined shear amount, a differential interference contrast detection system that condenses reflected light beams of the two polarized illumination spots reflected from the sample surface to generate interference light beams, a scanning unit that scans the sample surface using the two polarized illumination spots, a sensor unit that photoelectrically converts the interference light beams generated by the differential interference contrast detection system to generate interference signals, a height displacement measurement unit that processes the interference signals to measure height displacement between the illumination spots, and a height shape reconstruction unit that accumulates height displacement data of the illumination spots and reconstructs a height shape of the sample surface.