Abstract: A method of determining a resolution of a scanning electron microscope includes using an image of an object provided by the scanning electron microscope during scanning of an object of measurement, obtaining information about a resolution of the scanning electron microscope from the image of the object during its scanning by the scanning electron microscope; and using the information for determining the resolution of the scanning electron microscope.

Abstract: A novel method of precision measurements of sizes and line width roughness of small objects in accordance with their images obtained in scanning electron microscope, which is improvement of the existing methods and which realizes the new strategy of the measurements. This method has a higher stability with respect to noises of the video signal.

Abstract: A method of determining sizes of micro and nano objects in a scanning electron microscope, comprising the steps of obtaining an experimental video signal of an object in a scanning electron microscope, determining a size of an object from the obtained experimental video signal, calculating a model video signal based on the size of an object obtained from the experimental video signal and other values of the object in the scanning electron microscope, determining a size of the object from the model video signal, determining a correction based on a difference between the size of the object obtained from the experimental video signal and the size of the object obtained from the model video signal, and using the correction to determine a corrective size of the object from the size of the object determined from the experimental video signal and the thusly determined correction.

Abstract: A method of precision calibration of a microscope magnification with calculating a magnification scale as a quotient obtained when an image size of a test object viewed or collected with the microscope is divided by a true test object size, the methods comprising the steps of obtaining a magnification reference by taking a diffraction grating with a tested pitch value as the test object; distributing a brightness level between 30–70% amplitude in one of an image of the diffraction grating and a video signal obtained in the microscope; calculating a position of the video signal “center of mass” for each of formed “islands” of the brightness distribution; considering an average distance between neighboring “center of mass” as being a grating pitch in a microscope image of the object; and recognizing that a magnification scale of the microscope is a result of a division of an average pitch dimension by true grating pitch.

Abstract: A novel method of precision measurements of sizes and line width roughness of small objects in accordance with their images obtained in scanning electron microscope, which is improvement of the existing methods and which realizes the new strategy of the measurements. This method has a higher stability with respect to noises of the video signal.

Abstract: A method of measuring an area of an micro object has the steps of introducing in a scanning electron microscope an object to be measured, so as to obtain an image of the object; on a print or in a memory; separating a first line from the image; localizing a left edge and a right edge on the first line of the separated image; calculating a distance between the left edge and the right edge of the first line of the object separating further lines and repeating the steps of localization and calculation to obtain the distances between the left edge and the right edge of subsequent lines of the object calculating a total length of the distances; and calculating an area of the object as a product of the total length L and a distance ?Y between the lines of the image:

Abstract: A device for measuring sizes on photomasks has a television optical microscope, a system of periodical changing a resolution of the microscope, a regulated source of a base voltage, a comparator of a base signal and a television signal, and a former of short pulses, and a display unit.

Abstract: A method of calibration of magnification of a microscope with the use of a diffraction grating has the steps of determining a mean period of a diffraction grating by irradiating the diffraction grating with an electromagnetic radiation having a known wavelength and analyzing a resulting diffraction pattern, determining a scatter of individual values of a period of the diffraction grating by multiple measurements of periods of the diffraction grating by a microscope in pixels in one area in a microscope field of view, and calculating a mean value of the period and the scatter based on the measurements, determining a sufficient number of measurements of the period for providing an accepted statistic error of a magnification of the microscope, performing measurements corresponding to the determined acceptable number of measurements, of individual values of the period in pixels in a plurality of portions of the diffraction grating, calculating a general mean value of the period in pixels based on the immediately

Abstract: A method of controlling removal of photoresist in openings of a photoresist mask has the steps of obtaining in a scanning electron microscope a video signal of a bottom of an opening of a photoresist mask, and comparing values of the video signal in different points of an image which contains the opening to be controlled.

Abstract: This invention allows the scan nonlinearity of different type of scanning microscopes to be measured, including: optical, confocal, scanning electron and scanning probe microscopes. The scan nonlinearity of the scanning type measuring microscopes can be considerable source of errors in precise measurements of the Critical Dimension—CDs. The invention allows scanning measuring microscopes to be certified for scan nonlinearity; this invention can be used for the monitoring, adjustment and/or alignment of these type instruments. The high reliability of scan nonlinearity determination is achieved with the use of a pair of offset images of a calibration structure and consequent computer analysis of the signal differences. In addition to scan nonlinearity of a scanning measuring microscope being determined this proposed invention allows determination of heterogeneity of the pitch values intrinsic to any test-objects with periodic structure used as calibration references.

Abstract: A method evaluating a measuring electron microscope, comprising the steps of setting such modes of operation of a microscope, that will be used for subsequent measurements of sizes and line edge roughness; introducing a test-object which has a known straight edge into a chamber of objects of the microscope; orienting the test object on a stage of the microscope; scanning the test object with an electron beam; obtaining an image of the edge of the test object and saving the image in a digital form; localizing the edge of the test object and saving the image in a digital form; localizing the edge of the test object on the image on each line of scanning; producing storing a set of values of a coordinate X(i) which correspond to a position of the edge of an i-th line of scanning; approximating the sets of values X(i) with a straight line; calculating deviations P(I) of coordinates X(i) from a straight line on each line of scanning; analyzing a set of values of the deviations ?(i); calculating an ?ave and a maxima

Abstract: A method of precision calibration of a microscope magnification with calculating a magnification scale as a quotient obtained when an image size of a test object viewed or collected with the microscope is divided by a true test object size, the methods comprising the steps of obtaining a magnification reference by taking a diffraction grating with a tested pitch value as the test object; distributing a brightness level between 30-70% amplitude in one of an image of the diffraction grating and a video signal obtained in the microscope; calculating a position of the video signal “center of mass” for each of formed “islands” of the brightness distribution; considering an average distance between neighboring “center of mass” as being a grating pitch in a microscope image of the object; and recognizing that a magnification scale of the microscope is a result of a division of an average pitch dimension by true grating pitch.

Abstract: A method evaluating a measuring electron microscope, comprising the steps of setting such modes of operation of a microscope, that will be used for subsequent measurements of sizes and line edge roughness; introducing a test-object which has a known straight edge into a chamber of objects of the microscope; orienting the test object on a stage of the microscope; scanning the test object with an electron beam; obtaining an image of the edge of the test object and saving the image in a digital form; localizing the edge of the test object and saving the image in a digital form; localizing the edge of the test object on the image on each line of scanning; producing storing a set of values of a coordinate X(i) which correspond to a position of the edge of an i-th line of scanning; approximating the sets of values X(i) with a straight line; calculating deviations P(I) of coordinates X(i) from a straight line on each line of scanning; analyzing a set of values of the deviations ?(i); calculating an ?ave and a maxima

Abstract: A line edge roughness of micro objects is determined in a microscope by corresponding scanning and determination of deviations of points of the edge from a straight line.

Abstract: For measuring sizes in a scanning measuring microscope a nominal magnification is selected so that an object image occupies a substantial part of a field of view, an actual magnification is calculated depending on a coordinate on a screen along the direction of measurement, the object is positioned on a microscope table so that a line of scanning coincides with a direction of measurement and scanned by an electron beam to obtain a function of a video signal, points are localized which correspond to left and right edges of the object on a curve, and a size of the object is determined from the coordinates of the left and right edges and the magnification of the microscope changing from one point to the other.

Abstract: A method of controlling removal of photoresist in openings of a photoresist mask has the steps of obtaining in a scanning electron microscope a video signal of a bottom of an opening of a photoresist mask, and comparing values of the video signal in different points of an image which contains the opening to be controlled.

Abstract: A method of calibration of magnification of a microscope with the use of a diffraction grating has the steps of determining a mean period of a diffraction grating by irradiating the diffraction grating with an electromagnetic radiation having a known wavelength and analyzing a resulting diffraction pattern, determining a scatter of individual values of a period of the diffraction grating by multiple measurements of periods of the diffraction grating by a microscope in pixels in one area in a microscope field of view, and calculating a mean value of the period and the scatter based on the measurements, determining a sufficient number of measurements of the period for providing an accepted statistic error of a magnification of the microscope, performing measurements corresponding to the determined acceptable number of measurements, of individual values of the period in pixels in a plurality of portions of the diffraction grating, calculating a general mean value of the period in pixels based on the immediately

Abstract: A method of high accuracy measurements of sizes in a scanning measuring microscope has the steps of selecting a nominal magnification of a microscope so that an image of an object to be measured occupies a substantial part of a filled of a view in direction of a measurement, calculating an actual magnification of the microscope depending on a coordinate U on a screen of a monitor also along the direction of measurement which corresponds to M(U), positioning the object to be measured on a stage of the microscope so that a line of scanning of the object by an electron beam coincides with the direction of measurement, scanning of the object to be measured by the electron beam coincides with the direction of measurements, scanning of the object to be measured by the electron beam so as to obtain a function of a video signal S from the coordinate U along a line of scanning S(U), localization of points UL, UR which correspond to a left and a right edge of the object to be measured on a curved corresponding to S(U),

Abstract: A method of precision calibration of magnification of scanning microscopes with the use of a test diffraction grating includes positioning a test object on a stage of microscope so that strips of a test diffraction grating are perpendicular to a direction along which a calibration is performed, scanning of a selected portion of the test object along axes X and Y, measuring values of a signal S versus coordinates x and y in a plane of scanning and storing of the values S (x, y) in a digital form as a two-dimensional digital array, transforming the two-dimensional array of signals S(x, y) into a two-dimensional array S (u, v) by turning of the axes so that a direction of a new axis u is perpendicular to the strips of the grating and a direction of a new axis v coincides with the strips of the grating, line-by-line mathematical processing of the array S(u,v) for each line, converting of the one dimensional, complex function into a one-dimension spectrum of real values of a module, finding from the spectrum of th

Abstract: A method of measuring an angle of inclination of trapezoidal microobject side faces includes positioning an object in a microscope so that a direction along which a scanning of a video signal is to be performed is substantially perpendicular to an orientation of an inclined side face, determining on a video signal two main peaks near edges of an object to be measured which are edge peaks having an asymmetrical shape, in each left and right edge peaks of the video signal using two characteristic points, analyzing a left edge peak and a right edge peak of the video signal, and determining an angle of inclination of a side face, based on the analysis of the left and right edge peaks and the characteristic points of the video signal.