Patent application number | Description | Published |
20080266547 | SCATTEROMETER-INTERFEROMETER AND METHOD FOR DETECTING AND DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF SURFACE ARTIFACTS - A scatterometer-interferometer and method for detecting and distinguishing characteristics of surface artifacts provides improved artifact detection and increased scanning speed in interferometric measurement systems. A scatterometer and interferometer are combined in a single measurement head and may have overlapping, concentric or separate measurement spots. Interferometric sampling of a surface under measurement may be initiated in response to detection of a surface artifact by the scatterometer, so that continuous scanning of the surface under measurement can be performed until further information about the size and/or height of the artifact is needed. | 10-30-2008 |
20100108054 | OPTICALLY EFFICIENT AND THERMALLY PROTECTED SOLAR HEATING APPARATUS AND METHOD - An optically efficient and thermally stable solar heating apparatus and method provide efficient heating by using a solar collector having a transparent tube containing a porous absorbent material or structure that permits liquid or aerosol to percolate through the transparent tube. Thermal protection against overheating is provided when the system is drained by a transparent top with a bottom surface that, when in contact with another liquid medium filling the collector, permits incident light to enter and be collected, but when the liquid medium that normally contacts the bottom surface of the top is absent when the system is drained, incident light is reflected. The collector, top and transparent tubes may be extruded and made from the same recyclable plastic material, making the assembly lightweight for installation and ease of structural integration, while facilitating recyclability of the entire collector. | 05-06-2010 |
20120008135 | FLUORESCENCE-DETECTING DISK INSPECTION SYSTEM - An optical inspection system includes a fluorescence channel that detects fluorescent behavior (or lack thereof) of artifacts present on a surface under inspection and at least one other optical channel for determining a characteristic of the surface under inspection in an illuminated spot. The other optical channel may be a height measuring channel, such as an interferometric channel or a deflectometric channel, the other optical channel may be a scatterometric channel, or both height measurement and scatterometry may be employed in combination as a three channel system. The presence of absence of fluorescent behavior may be used to correct assumptions about or determine a type of artifact detected by scatterometry, and may be used to correct the polarity of a height measurement made by a height-measuring channel. | 01-12-2012 |
20120057154 | OPTICAL MEASURING SYSTEM WITH MATCHED COLLECTION LENS AND DETECTOR LIGHT GUIDE - An optical surface inspection system provides dark-field detection avoiding ghost images and without capturing, stray, reflected or re-scattered light. The system includes an illumination system that generates an illumination spot on a surface under inspection collecting lens that collects substantially all light scattered from the surface under inspection from the illumination spot. The system also includes a light guide with a first end having a numerical aperture matched to an exit aperture of the collecting lens and a field of view matched to the illumination spot, and a second end coupled to a detector. | 03-08-2012 |
20120057172 | OPTICAL MEASURING SYSTEM WITH ILLUMINATION PROVIDED THROUGH A VOID IN A COLLECTING LENS - An optical measuring system includes a scatterometer in which an illumination beam is provided through an aperture in a lens used to collect light for the scattering detection. The void may be a slit in the lens, a missing portion along an edge of the lens, or another suitable void. Another detection channel may be provided to detect light returning through the void in the collecting lens, for example, a profilometer may be implemented by detecting interference between reflected light returning along the illumination path and light from the illumination source. | 03-08-2012 |
20120154806 | OPTICAL INSPECTION SYSTEM WITH POLARIZATION ISOLATION OF DETECTION SYSTEM REFLECTIONS - An optical inspection system includes a polarizing isolator that reduces error in measurements by preventing ghost light reflected or scattered from element of a detection subsystem from re-entering the illumination and detection optical paths. The polarizing isolator may include a polarizing splitter that isolates light directionally according the a linear polarization state and two quarter-wave plates for transforming linearly polarized light to circularly polarized light. | 06-21-2012 |