Patent · US Active

Phase retardance inspection instrument

US8130378B2 · kind B2 · utility

5Cited by
5References
65Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateFeb 6, 2009
Grant dateMar 6, 2012
Priority date
Expiry dateMay 24, 2030

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG01N2021/216
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A phase retardance inspection instrument, comprising: a light source module for generating a single-wavelength light beam; a circularly polarized light generating module, comprising a polarizer and a first phase retarder, for receiving the single-wavelength light beam as it is guided to pass through the polarizer and the first phase retarder in order; and a detecting module, comprising a second phase retarder, a polarizing beam splitter, a first image sensor and a second image sensor, for receiving and guiding a circularly polarized light beam to travel through the second phase retarder and the polarizing beam splitter in order after it passes through a substrate under inspection, wherein the polarizing beam splitter splits an elliptically polarized light beam into intensity vector components of a left-hand circularly polarized light beam and a right-hand circularly polarized light beam, which are to be emitted into the first image sensor and the second image sensor, respectively.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.