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:
Jun. 29, 2010
Filed:
May. 21, 2007
Zhongping Cai, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Alexander Slobodov, San Jose, CA (US);
Anatoly Romanovsky, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Christian H. Wolters, Campbell, CA (US);
Zhongping Cai, Santa Clara, CA (US);
Alexander Slobodov, San Jose, CA (US);
Anatoly Romanovsky, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Christian H. Wolters, Campbell, CA (US);
KLA-Tencor Technologies Corporation, Milpitas, CA (US);
Abstract
An inspection system and method is provided herein for increasing the detection range of the inspection system. According to one embodiment, the inspection system may include a photodetector having a plurality of stages, which are adapted to convert light scattered from a specimen into an output signal, and a voltage divider network coupled for extending the detection range of the photodetector (and thus, the detection range of the inspection system) by saturating at least one of the stages. This forces the photodetector to operate in a non-linear manner. However, measurement inaccuracies are avoided by calibrating the photodetector output to remove any non-linear effects that may be created by intentionally saturating the at least one of the stages. In one example, a table of values may be generated during a calibration phase to convert the photodetector output into an actual amount of scattered light.