Hitachi-high-technologies Corporation

Hitachi High-tech Corporation

Kenji Aiko

Kei Shimura

Minori Noguchi

Shuichi Chikamatsu

Masayuki Ochi

Mizuki Mohara

Hisafumi Iwata

Mizuki Oku

Masaaki Ito

Hiroyuki Yamashita

Takuaki Sekiguchi

Shigeo Otsuki

Shigeru Abe

Hiroshi Kawaguchi

Tetsuya Watanabe

Shigeya Tanaka

Yasuko Aoki

Yusuke Miyazaki

Hiroshi Higashi

Touya Ono

Yuichiro Iijima

Yuichiro Kato

This far-infrared spectroscopy device comprises a holding mechanism that is capable of holding a sample in humid air, a detector for detecting light obtained by emitting far infrared light onto the sample, and a signal processing unit for calculating an absorption spectrum of the sample from a signal from the detector. The signal processing unit comprises a threshold processing unit that subjects the signal from the detector to threshold processing and removes the part of the signal influenced by the absorption by the water vapor in the humid air, a signal interpolation unit that carries out interpolation on the signal that has been subjected to the removal by the threshold processing unit, and an absorbance calculation unit for calculating an absorbance from the signal that has been subjected to the interpolation by the signal interpolation unit.

Far-infrared spectroscopy device

This invention addresses the abovementioned problem, and the purpose of this invention is to provide a far-infrared spectroscopy device that uses an is-TPG method to generate far-infrared light, and is capable of efficiently detecting is-TPG light without a detection optical system being fine-tuned. Even if the far-infrared light incidence angles on an Si prism for detection are the same when far-infrared light having a first frequency is incident on a non-linear optical crystal for detection and when far-infrared light having a second frequency is incident on the non-linear optical crystal for detection, this far-infrared spectroscopy device adjusts the incidence surface angle of pump light in relation to the non-linear optical crystal for detection such that the angle of the far-infrared light in relation to the pump light within the non-linear optical crystal for detection can be appropriately set for each far-infrared light frequency (see FIG.A).

Far-infrared spectroscopy device and far-infrared spectroscopy method

The present invention provides a far-infrared light source capable of reducing the shift in the location irradiated with far-infrared light even when the frequency of the far-infrared light changes. A far-infrared light source according to the present invention is configured so that the variation in the emission angle of far-infrared light in a nonlinear optical crystal when the frequency of the far-infrared light changes is substantially offset by the variation in the refractive angle of the far-infrared light at the interface between the nonlinear optical crystal and a prism when the frequency of the far-infrared light changes (see FIG.).

Far-infrared light source and far-infrared spectrometer

This far-infrared spectroscopy device is provided with: a variable wavelength far-infrared light source that generates first far-infrared light; an illuminating optical system that irradiates a sample with the first far-infrared light; a detecting nonlinear optical crystal that converts second far-infrared light into near-infrared light using pump light, said second far-infrared light having been transmitted from the sample; and a far-infrared image-forming optical system that forms an image of the sample in the detecting nonlinear optical crystal. The irradiation position of the first far-infrared light on the sample does not depend on the wavelength of the first far-infrared light.

In an is-TPG method in which lasers having two different wavelengths are used to generate a wavelength-variable far-infrared light, a far-infrared light (TPG light) having an unstable output at a broad wavelength is also slightly generated at the same time with only one laser light. The generated is-TPG and the TPG light are converted, after passing through a specimen, to near-infrared light inside a nonlinear optical crystal for detection and are observed by a detector. The signal light output of the is-TPG light becomes unstable due to the TPG light. According to the present invention, the TPG light is removed by means of a slit and the like (filter) immediately before the specimen and is not introduced into the nonlinear optical crystal for detection. At this time, by using a change in the emission direction when the frequency of the is TPG light is changed, the filter is moved in accordance with the frequency so that only the is-TPG light passes therethrough (see FIG.C).

Far-infrared spectroscopic device and far-infrared spectroscopic method

A terahertz wave generating device according to the present invention comprises a fixed-wavelength pump optical laser that generates a single wavelength pump beam, a variable-wavelength laser that emits a seed beam and is capable of making the wavelength of the seed beam variable, a delay element that delays pulses of the pump beam and a first non-linear crystal that generates terahertz waves by receiving the seed beam, a first pump beam that is not delayed by the delay element and a second pump beam that is delayed by the delay element.

Terahertz wave generating device and spectroscopic device using same

The present invention provides a device for detecting foreign matter and a method for detecting foreign matter to detect a foreign matter on a surface of an object such as a film of an electrode mixture etc. or a foreign matter contained in the object, thereby to improve the reliability of the object. By irradiating an object with a terahertz illumination light(wavelength of 4 &#x3bc;m to 10 mm) and detecting a scattered lightfrom an electrodeas an example of the object by a scattered light detector, a foreign matter on a surface of the electrodeor contained in the electrode, for example, a metal foreign matter, is detected. The electrodeis one in which electrode mixture layerseach including an active material, conductive additive and a binder as components are coated on both surfaces of a collector. The scattered lightresults from a part of a transmitted lightreflected by the metal foreign matter

Device for detecting foreign matter and method for detecting foreign matter

A defect inspection system can suppress an effect of light from a rough surface or a circuit pattern and increasing a gain of light from a defect to detect the defect with high sensitivity. When a lens with a large NA value is used, the diameter is, an angle between the sample surface and a traveling direction of the light from a defect being &#x3b1;. A system receives the light from the defect at a reduced elevation angle &#x3b1;with respect to the sample surface to reduce the scattered light, and to increase the light from the defect. The diameteris smaller than the diameter, resulting in a reduction in the ability to focus the scattered light. When a lens having a diameteris used, the lens interferes with the sample. To avoid the interference, a portion of the lens interfering with the sample is removed.

Defect inspection system

Non-contact type displacement sensors which measure the height of a substrate surface are installed above the substrate in order to hold the upper surface of the substrate at a desired height or to maintain the flatness of the substrate. A substrate mounting device is such that a plurality of grooves and of barriers are provided on the upper surface of a table and air is supplied between the substrate and the table to enable the pressure of air to displace the substrate. In addition, the substrate mounting device has such a structure as to make it possible to deform the substrate into an arbitrary convex-concave shape or to make the substrate flat by feeding back the output of the displacement sensor.

Inspection apparatus, substrate mounting device and inspection method

A wafer surface observing apparatus for inspecting a peripheral portion of an object has (A) a lens system and a CCD camera for taking images of the peripheral portion of the object, (B) storage for storing image data about the taken images, and (C) display for displaying the image data stored in the storage device. In particular, the present apparatus can have functions of rotating the object placed on a prealignment portion, recording images of one full outer periphery of an end portion of the object by the lens system and CCD camera into the location where the orientation flat portions or notched portions of the object are placed in position, accepting the images into the storage device, and displaying the images on a CRT.

Wafer surface observing method and apparatus

A defect inspection system can suppress an effect of light from a sample rough surface or a regular circuit pattern and increasing a gain of light from a defect such as a foreign material to detect the defect on the sample surface with high sensitivity. When a lens with a large NA value is used, the outer diameter of the lens is, and an angle between the sample surface and a traveling direction of the light from a defect is &#x3b1;. An oblique detection optics system receives the light from the defect at a reduced elevation angle &#x3b1;with respect to the sample surface to reduce light from the sample rough surface, an oxide film rough bottom surface, and a circuit pattern, and to increase the amount of the light from the defect and detected. The diameterof a lens is smaller than the diameter, resulting in a reduction in the ability to focus the scattered light. When a lens with an outer diameteris used to improve the focus ability, the lens interferes with the sample. To avoid the interference, a portion of the lens interfering with the sample is removed. The lens has an aperture larger than the diameterwhile the lens receives the light scattered at the elevation angle &#x3b1;, making it possible to improve the ability to detect defects and lens performance simultaneously.

Provided are a defect inspection apparatus having a large range for receiving light scattering from fine defects while securing a sufficiently large signal strength; and a defect inspection method for the same. The defect inspection apparatus includes: a stage part capable of traveling relative to optical systems with a substrate to be inspected mounted on the stage part; an illumination optical system for illuminating an inspection area on the substrate; a detection optical system for detecting light coming from the inspection area on the substrate; an image sensor for converting, to a signal, an image which is formed on the image sensor by the detection optical system; a signal processor for detecting defects by processing the signal from the image sensor; and a plane reflecting mirror, arranged between the detection optical system and the substrate, for transmitting the light, which comes from the substrate, to the detection optical system.

Defect inspection method and defect inspection apparatus

A defect inspecting apparatus of the invention solves a problem that in a defect inspecting apparatus, because of improving detection sensitivity of a microscopic defect by reducing a detection pixel size, a focal depth becomes shallow, a height of imaging is varied due to environmental change and the detection sensitivity of a defect becomes unstable. This apparatus comprises an XY stage, which carries a substrate to be inspected and scans in a predetermined direction, and a mechanism having a system of irradiating a defect on the inspected substrate at a slant and detecting the defect by a detection optical system disposed on the upper side, which corrects a height of imaging in real time for change in temperature and barometric pressure in order to keep the imaging in a best condition.

Growing community of inventors

Ninomiya, Japan

Kenji Aiko