Patent ID: 6563591
Filing Date: 2003-05-13
Classification: G01N,H01L

Abstract:
A metal film grain orientation measuring system comprising:a stage holding a substrate, the substrate having a thin metal film disposed on a first side of the substrate; an optical system for applying a non-destructive optical pump pulse and a non-destructive optical probe pulse to a free surface of the metal film, the probe pulse being temporally delayed from the pump pulse; a detector for detecting changes in the probe pulse reflected from the metal film, the detector detecting changes in the probe pulse as a function of time that are due to a transient optical response of the metal film to the pump pulse, the transient optical response comprising a plurality of components, said plurality of components comprising a change in the energy distribution of electrons, the presence of a propagating strain pulse and a change in local temperature; and, a processor for determining a grain orientation of the metal film from the changes in the probe pulse.