Patent ID: 7874016
Filing Date: 2011-01-18
Classification: B82Y,G01Q

Abstract:
1. A scanning probe microscope comprising: a scanning stylus movable along X, Y and Z axes to follow a surface of a sample along a predetermined observation route along which a observation stop is recursively defined from a preceding observation stop; a location data reader configured to read location data indicative of a location of a observation point which is found by the scanning stylus moved down proximate to or into contact with the surface of the sample; a movement controller configured to move the scanning stylus along the observation route, wherein the movement controller moves the scanning stylus down to read the location data when the stylus reaches at an observation stop and moves the scanning stylus up when the scanning stylus comes proximate to or into contact with the surface of the sample en route between adjacent two observation positions; and a stop location calculator configured to define a next observation stop along the observation route, wherein coordinates of the next observation stop are a function of coordinates of a found observation point; wherein the observation route comprises rows of parallelly arranged sub-routes, and an interval to a next sub-route is recursively defined by the location data collected along a preceding row of sub-route.