Patents Examined by Hwa (Andrew) Lee
  • Patent number: 10274307
    Abstract: A film thickness measurement device includes a light source, an imaging component, and a controller. The controller estimates unknown variables I1(j), I20(j), k(j), and t(i) based on the Formula (1), where i represents an observation point number of an interference image captured by the imaging component, j represents a number for a type of wavelength of monochromatic light, ?(j) represents wavelength of the monochromatic light, n represents a refractive index of a semi-transparent film, g(i,j) represents a brightness value observed at an observation point, I1(j) represents an intensity of reflected light from a front face of the semi-transparent film, I20(j) represents an intensity of reflected light from a rear face of the semi-transparent film when there is no absorption of light in the semi-transparent film, k(j) represents an absorption coefficient of the semi-transparent film, and t(i) represents a film thickness of the semi-transparent film.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2016
    Date of Patent: April 30, 2019
    Assignee: TORAY ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Katsuichi Kitagawa, Masafumi Otsuki
  • Patent number: 10260948
    Abstract: The invention relates to a device (1) and a method (20) for determining a spectrum (X) of scattered radiation (S). The invention further relates to a method (70) for calculating the spectrum (X) and a method for compressing unstructured data (60) of known distribution. To be able to determine the spectrum (X) as precisely as possible and to derive from this the characteristics of materials that scatter laser pulses (P), the invention proposes that at least one characteristic of the laser pulse (P) is determined and that a spectrum analyzer (5) is used for this. Frequencies (F) of laser pulses (P) and volumes (M) of backscattered radiation (S) are combined into frequency and volume values (F?, M?) to calculate the spectrum (X). The most frequent data values are deleted from the data to compress the data (60).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2019
    Assignee: LEIBNIZ-INSTITUT FUER ATMOSPHAERENPHYSIK E.V. AN DER UNIVERSITAET ROSTOCK
    Inventor: Josef Hoeffner
  • Patent number: 10260868
    Abstract: An electronic wafer inspecting method includes: rotating the wavelength transparent wafer, emitting, from a light source coupled with an interferometric device, two light beams, to form, a measurement volume and having a variable inter-fringe distance within the volume, a time signature of a defect intersecting the measurement volume depending on an inter-fringe distance where the defect intersects the volume, the device and the wafer arranged so that the measurement volume extends into a wafer region, collecting the light scattered by the wafer region, emitting a signal representing the variation in the intensity of the collected light per time, detecting in the signal, a frequency of the intensity, the frequency being the time of the passage of a defect through the measurement volume, determining, based on the value of the inter-fringe distance at the location where the defect passes, the position of the defect.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 16, 2019
    Assignee: UNITY SEMICONDUCTOR
    Inventors: Mayeul Durand De Gevigney, Philippe Gastaldo
  • Patent number: 10254531
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method for observing a sample, in particular an anatomopathological slide formed from a thin thickness of a sampled biological tissue. It includes a step of illuminating the sample with a light source and acquiring, with an image sensor, an image representing the light transmitted by the sample. The image undergoes holographic reconstruction, so as to obtain a representation, in the plane of the sample, of the light wave transmitted by the latter. The method includes applying an impregnating fluid to the sample, such that the sample is impregnated with said impregnating liquid, said impregnating liquid having a refractive index strictly higher than 1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 9, 2019
    Assignee: Commissariat A l'Energie Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives
    Inventors: Sophie Morel, Cedric Allier
  • Patent number: 10234346
    Abstract: A serial weak FBG interrogator is disclosed. The serial weak FBG interrogator may include a CW tunable laser or pulsed laser utilized as a laser source and an EDFA. The serial weak FBG interrogator may also be an interrogation of a single sensor system by utilization of a DFB laser which utilizes a single sensor, which may be an interferometer sensor, an extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer or a wavelength-modulated sensor. The serial weak FBG interrogator may also include a computer system or CSPU.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2019
    Assignee: SENTEK INSTRUMENT LLC
    Inventors: Bo Dong, Fabin Shen, Anbo Wang
  • Patent number: 10215833
    Abstract: An interferometric tracking device including: an optical cascade comprising a plurality of image dividers, each of the image dividers splitting incident light into a plurality of non-parallel orthogonally polarized beams, the plurality of image dividers including: an incident image divider receiving light into the optical cascade; one or more intermediary image dividers optically coupled to the incident image divider; and one or more exit image dividers, each exit image divider optically coupled to one of the intermediary image dividers; a plurality of pairs of shearing interferometers, each pair of the shearing interferometers being optically coupled between optically adjacent image dividers in the optical cascade; and one or more focal plane arrays, the orthogonally polarized beams from the one or more exit image dividers being imaged onto the one or more focal plane arrays.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: February 26, 2019
    Inventor: Richard A. Hutchin
  • Patent number: 10209161
    Abstract: A measuring method for an optical element for obtaining a plurality of measurement errors of the optical element is disclosed, which comprises steps of irradiating a laser ray to an overall portion of the optical element, wherein the optical element is supported as one of a horizontal state and a vertical state; rotating continuously the optical element with 360 degrees to reflect the laser ray to obtain a reflected light wavefront picture from the reflected laser ray; analyzing the reflected light wavefront picture to obtain a plurality of aberration characteristics information, respectively, each being one of a sine and a cosine wave functions of a wavefront error for each of the plurality of specified rotation angles; analyzing a plurality of interference factors each for the plurality of measurement errors on each of the plurality of aberration characteristics information, respectively; calculating and extracting a plurality of classified aberration characteristics information for each of the plurality of
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 19, 2019
    Assignee: NATIONAL APPLIED RESEARCH LABORATORIES
    Inventors: Shenq-Tsong Chang, Wei-Cheng Lin, Ting-Ming Huang
  • Patent number: 10190972
    Abstract: A device for managing light pulses for measuring the reaction of a sample exposed to a first light pulse, the measurement being performed by analysis of a signal emitted by the sample subjected to a second light pulse, shifted with respect to the first pulse by a determined interval of time, the device including two optical detectors for detecting the pulses of two light beams emitted by two pulsed laser sources, respectively, each beam emitting pulses with respective repetition frequencies that are different, arbitrary and stable over a determined period in the direction of the sample; the detectors being connected to a computer for determining the interval of time between two pulses coming from the first and the second beam, respectively, and constituting the first and second pulses; the computer being connected to an analyzer for measuring the reaction of the sample having as input parameter the interval of time between the two pulses, where the computer uses an algorithm making use of the stability of
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2019
    Assignees: ECOLE POLYTECHNIQUE, CENTRE NATIONAL DE LA RECHERCHE SCIENTIFIQUE
    Inventors: Laura Antonucci, Adeline Bonvalet, Manuel Joffre, Xavier Solinas
  • Patent number: 9271643
    Abstract: Systems for imaging a sample are provided. The system includes an optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging portion having an associated OCT path defined by one set of optical elements between an OCT signal delivery optical fiber and the sample; an image capture portion having an associated image capture path defined by a second set of optical elements between an image capture device and the sample, different from the OCT path; and an illuminator portion having an associated illumination path defined by a third set of optical elements between an illumination source and the sample. The OCT path, the image capture path, and the illuminator path have at least one optical element in common, and the respective paths differ from each other by at least one optical element. The OCT path and the image capture path share a common intermediate conjugate image plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 24, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: Bioptigen, Inc.
    Inventors: Bradley A. Bower, Robert H. Hart, Pete Huening, Eric L. Buckland
  • Patent number: 8908191
    Abstract: A method for zero-contact measurement of the topography of a spherically or aspherically curved air-glass surface of an optical lens or lens combination, distinguished in that the surface (S1) to be measured is sampled on its glass rear side with an optical measurement beam through the air-glass surface (S2) lying before it in the measurement direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 19, 2010
    Date of Patent: December 9, 2014
    Assignee: Jos. Schneider Optische Werke GmbH
    Inventors: Theo Tschudi, Bernhard Braunecker
  • Patent number: 7433053
    Abstract: Apparatus for optical inspection of a sample includes a radiation source, adapted to irradiate a spot on the sample with coherent radiation, and collection optics, adapted to collect the radiation scattered from the spot so as to form a beam of scattered radiation. A diffractive optical element (DOE) is positioned to intercept the beam of scattered radiation and is adapted to deflect a first portion of the beam by a predetermined offset relative to a second portion of the beam, and then to optically combine the first portion with the second portion to generate a product beam. A detector is positioned to receive the product beam and to generate a signal responsive thereto, which is processed by a signal processor so as to determine an autocorrelation value of the product beam.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2002
    Date of Patent: October 7, 2008
    Assignee: Applied Materials, Israel, Ltd.
    Inventor: Daniel Some
  • Patent number: 7372579
    Abstract: An apparatus for monitoring a trench profile of a substrate includes a radiation-emitting unit for irradiating the substrate with infrared radiation. The intensity and/or polarization state of the infrared radiation reflected from the substrate is measured at a multitude of measuring frequencies. An analyzing unit determines the respective reflectance and relative phase change and/or relative amplitude change in relation to the respective measuring frequency. In addition, a reflectance spectrum, a relative phase change spectrum and/or a relative amplitude change spectrum may be obtained. By performing a Fourier transformation of the respective spectrum, a secondary Fourier spectrum is obtained. The secondary Fourier spectrum plots a virtual amplitude against corresponding values of a frequency periodicity that correspond to a substrate depth. Peaks of the virtual amplitude may indicate reflective planes within the substrate at respective depths.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2006
    Date of Patent: May 13, 2008
    Assignees: Infineon Technologies, AG, Nanya Technology Corporation
    Inventors: Zhen-Long Chen, Peter Weidner, Pierre-Yves Guittet, Alexander Kasic, Barbara Schmidt, Anita Klee
  • Patent number: 7369251
    Abstract: Techniques and systems for using optical interferometers to obtain full-field optical measurements of surfaces, such as surfaces of flat panels, patterned surfaces of wafers and substrates. Applications of various shearing interferometers for measuring surfaces are described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 28, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 6, 2008
    Assignee: Ultratech, Inc.
    Inventors: Ares J. Rosakis, David Owen, Stephen Gledden, Sean Olson
  • Patent number: 7365861
    Abstract: An apparatus having a wavefront measuring device (1, 2, 7), which is designed to determine a wavefront tilt in one or more non-parallel transverse directions perpendicular to an optical axis of the optical imaging system, at a plurality of measurement points which are mutually offset in the direction of the optical axis. An evaluation unit (5) determines a telecentricity error value from the wavefront tilt measurement values obtained by the wavefront measuring device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 6, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2008
    Assignee: Carl Zeiss SMT AG
    Inventor: Ulrich Wegmann
  • Patent number: 7359058
    Abstract: The Miniature Fourier Transform Spectrophotometer provides the capability, in a miniaturized device, of determining the light absorption/transmission spectra of a collected sample of gas or liquid though Fourier Transform spectroscopy techniques. The device takes an optical input from an optical fiber, manipulates that light through miniature optical components, and launches it into a miniaturized Michelson interferometer with a scanning mirror that acquires the interferogram of the optical input. The interferogram can be processed to retrieve the spectrum of the input light. A novel multi-stepped micro-mirror operates as the optical path length modulator in the miniaturized interferometer. A unique monolithic beamsplitter/mirror combination provides for accurate alignment of the components and greatly simplifies product integration. The device is designed to cover various optical spectra of interest.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2008
    Assignee: Morgan Research Corporation
    Inventors: Michael Scott Kranz, Larry Christopher Heaton, Calvin Wayne Long
  • Patent number: 7355692
    Abstract: A method for inspecting an electrical circuit including optically inspecting at least a portion of an electrical circuit by detecting light reflected therefrom in a first image during a first time interval, optically inspecting light emitted from at least a portion of the electrical circuit by fluorescence in a second image acquired during a second time interval and indicating defects in the electrical circuit based on geometrically coincident indications from both the optically inspecting at least a portion of an electrical circuit by detecting light reflected therefrom and the optically inspecting light emitted from at least a portion of the electrical circuit by fluorescence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 8, 2008
    Assignee: Orbotech Ltd
    Inventors: Amir Noy, Gilad Davara
  • Patent number: 7355719
    Abstract: An interferometer provides a large dynamic range for perpendicular displacement measurements. In operation, a measurement reflector on an object reflects a measurement beam to an overlying Porro prism, and a reference reflector on the object returns a reference beam to the interferometer. A second Porro prism in the interferometer can return the reference beam for a second pass to the reference reflector, while the measurement beam complete only one pass. Reductions in beam walk-off result from retroreflections in the Porro prisms and the matching effects that some object rotations have on measurement and reference beams. Perpendicular motion of the object relative to the first Porro prism causes a Doppler shift only in the measurement beam. Accordingly, a beat frequency found when combining the measurement and reference beams can indicate a residual Doppler shift associated with the motion in the perpendicular direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 16, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 8, 2008
    Assignee: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: William Clay Schluchter
  • Patent number: 7352459
    Abstract: A fluorescence spectrophotometer system may be implemented in scanning fluorescence polarization detection applications. A wavelength and area scanning fluorescence spectrophotometer system may include a light source, an excitation double monochromator, an excitation/emission light transfer module, an emission double monochromator, a high speed timer-counter circuit board, a precision positioning apparatus for positioning a sample relative to the focal plane of the excitation light, and polarizing filters at the excitation side and the emission side. The system may be operative to analyze more than one fluorescent compound in the sample; additionally or alternatively, the system enables analysis of samples from selected ones of a plurality of samples.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 31, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 1, 2008
    Assignee: Chromagen, Inc.
    Inventors: Gene Gould, Michael J. Conrad
  • Patent number: 7349085
    Abstract: Carbon nanotube orientation may be detected by exposing the carbon nanotube to a pair of laser beams oriented transversely to one another. By observing the effect on the intensity of transmitted light from a first laser beam when the polarization of the second laser beam is changed, the carbon nanotube orientation can be derived.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 10, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 25, 2008
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Shida Tan, Yuegang Zhang
  • Patent number: RE41743
    Abstract: A watertight inlet device for inserting a cable containing optical fibers into a chamber or a container, e.g. into a splice box. The device includes a metal solepiece for securing the strength members of the optical cable, and which plugs into and fixes to a tubular sealing body equipped with an external O-ring gasket and having its rear portion shaped to form a sealing stuffing box on the outer sheath of the cable. The rear of the nut of the stuffing box receives a clamp for retaining the cable. Once the device has been fitted, the resulting assembly is inserted into the inlet passageway until it abuts against a shoulder in the passageway. Then only the head of the securing solepiece and a groove in the body project inside the container, the groove then receiving a key or fork for retaining the assembly.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 23, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 21, 2010
    Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company
    Inventors: Thierry Naudin, Christophe Corbille, Hervé Brunet, Jacques Salaün