Patent ID: 7777882

Claim:
A method for real-time monitoring and determination of the thickness, optical properties and quality of thin films of transparent inorganic and organic materials during their growth process on polymeric substrates, comprising: (a) multiple ellipsometric measurements taken simultaneously at different wavelengths in the energy region from violet to far ultraviolet, where the transparent inorganic and organic materials exhibit their optical absorption peaks; (b) simultaneous ellipsometric measurement of at least 32 different wavelengths, that represent a pseudo-dielectric function spectra, in the violet - far ultraviolet energy region, collected in a short time in the range of ms, using a multiwavelength ellipsometer unit; (c) parameterization and analysis of the measured pseudo-dielectric function with the use of a geometrical model of an air/thin film(s)/substrate, for the calculation of the wavelength dependent optical parameters of each film, thus providing the Penn gap E 0 , energy gap E g , refractive index n(E=0), thickness and deposition rate of the transparent thin film grown on the polymeric substrates; (d) calculation of the stoichiometry x of oxides, nitrides and composition through the Penn gap or mean gap E 0 , and of the stoichiometry, composition and quality of the thin films grown on the polymeric substrates that are related to the refractive index n(E=0); and (e) determination of the barrier and reflective properties of the transparent thin films grown on the polymeric substrates through the optical properties of Penn gap E 0 , energy gap E g and refractive index n(E=0).