3D MEMS Metrology with Stylus Profilers (AN60)

Three dimensional measurement capability is increasingly a key requirement for manufacturing commercially viable MEMS. Stylus profiling and the Atomic Force Profiler (AFPTM) solve certain metrology problems in MEMS that other tools do not. Some of these problems are strictly technical, while others have a strong cost dimension, in addition to the technical requirements. One important feature of stylus profiling that makes it the unique metrology solution that it is, is that the core technology is less costly than in other major tools used to measure MEMS. Stylus profilers that have few automation features therefore enjoy lower starting prices than most other metrology tools, making them ideal for cost effective measurements in some applications. But stylus profilers offer other advantages which are discussed below.

The AFP, on the other hand, is a uniquely powerful metrology tool because of its novel technology, which for the first time ever enables numerous measurement combinations that are impossible to make with any other tool. Veeco Metrology Group provides the Dektak Series Stylus Profilers, a complete line, from the benchtop to the fully-automated models, that are used to measure MEMS