The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Dec. 22, 1998
Filed:
Jan. 02, 1997
Applicant:
Inventors:
Assignee:
Kla-Tencor Corporation, San Jose, CA (US);
Attorney:
Primary Examiner:
Int. Cl.
CPC ...
G01B / ; G01B / ;
U.S. Cl.
CPC ...
73105 ;
Abstract
An acoustic sensor used with a first sensor (such as a profilometer, scanning probe microscope or the like) allows for the positioning of the first sensor with respect to the sample. The acoustic sensor has a greater range than a profilometer or a scanning probe microscope, and a relatively quick response time, which allows it to be an effective proximity detector. Additionally, the acoustic sensor is not affected by the material of the sample's surface layer.