Patent ID: 6593739
Filing Date: 2003-07-15
Classification: G01R

Abstract:
A method for measuring at least one of three independent spatially resolved components of magnetization of material on the surface of an object, comprising;a) simultaneously and substantially uniformly illuminating a field of view on the surface of the object with an nth set of light rays from an optical system, the light rays incident on to the surface at an approximate angle 0 to the normal to the surface of the object, the incident light rays having an nth plane of incidence with respect to the surface and an nth polarization with respect to the nth plane of incidence, the incident light rays having an nth angle with respect to a coordinate system of the optical system; and then b) constructing at least one image of the surface from light from the nth set of incident light rays which are reflected and scattered from the surface, wherein each image has resolution elements less than 1 micron in diameter and where the field of view contains more than 1,000 resolution elements; and then c) repeating steps a) and b) to construct at least two images for at least a first and a second different sets of light rays, wherein the magnetic field at the surface of the object is not changed and the relative positions of the object and the optical system is not changed; and then d) calculating at least one of the three independent spatially resolved magnetic components from the at least two images.