A wafer chuck illumination device for illuminating a light source to detect a position of foreign substances polluting a wafer chuck is provided. The device includes a lamp for generating a white light source, and a collimator lens for transforming the white light source into a beam of parallel rays and for directing the beam of parallel rays to a wafer chuck for detecting and cleaning foreign substances on the wafer chuck.

A defect detection optical system includes a light receiving system including n light receiving elements arranged in a direction perpendicular to a main scan direction, for focusing an image thereon such that the image becomes in the arranging direction of the light receiving elements, in which, when a width of the image focused thereon in the main scan direction is equal to or smaller than the width of the light receiving elements, light reflected from a recessed or protruded defect is swung in...

A foreign-matter inspection apparatus is implemented which allows the stable detection sensitivity to be maintained. A laser beam emitted from a laser apparatus is applied to a beam irradiation sample via an irradiation unit and a mirror. Then, the laser beam is captured into a beam-capturing camera via an image-forming lens and a beam-direction switching mirror. Based on the captured beam image, an image computational processing unit judges inclination of the laser beam, then adjusting the irra...

A method by which necessity of correction of any defect detected in inspection of a product reticle can exactly be judged is proposed, in which device patterns are formed in an exposure area on a product reticle, programmed defects of which transferability being preliminarily evaluated are formed in an evaluation pattern area different from the exposure area, where any defect detected in product reticle inspection is evaluated for its transferability by comparing the detected defect and the prel...

The disclosed subject matter is related to a circuit pattern inspection apparatus for detecting a gradual changing of defect expanding over a large area of the semiconductor wafer. In order to detect a gradual changing of a defect related condition expanding over a large area of the semiconductor wafer, comparison is made between dies on a wafer that are separated from each other by a distance of at least one die width. For example, when a value according to a difference between such dies exceed...

A method and apparatus for precision distance measurement are provided to perform accurate measurement of distance to an object according to light spots formed on the light receiving surface of a detector even when multiple reflections are involved. A beam of light emitted from a light source and reflected from the object is focused on the viewing surface as light spots through an optical member. The focal position of a reflected beam of light is determined according to a focal position detectio...

A method of measuring the degree of alloying of galvanized steel sheet through the use of laser beams includes the steps of directing a laser beam on a standard sample and reflecting and splitting the beam and detecting the intensity of specular reflection I.sub.0 (.alpha.) at an angle of reflection (.alpha.) and the intensity of scattering I.sub.0 (.beta.) at an angle of reflection (.beta.) to thus obtain the degree of alloying (X.sub.0) of the standard sample by the formula: ##EQU1## The above...

The present invention is drawn to an apparatus for continuously measuring physical and chemical parameters in a fluid cell comprising a single flow cell having a fluid interface for conducting the fluid through the flow cell, an electrical interface connected to at least one first means provided in the flow cell wall for measuring at least one first parameter of the fluid in the flow cell, and an optical interface for transmitting light into the flow cell and for receiving light from the flow ce...

In the optical examination of plastic cards, the latter are illuminated with focused light, which is mixed with a diffuse component, in order reliably to discriminate even relatively slight differences in the reflectivity of the surface sections.

A compact and versatile multi-spot inspection imaging system employs an objective for focusing an array of radiation beams to a surface and a second reflective or refractive objective having a large numerical aperture for collecting scattered radiation from the array of illuminated spots. The scattered radiation from each illuminated spot is focused to a corresponding optical fiber channel so that information about a scattering may be conveyed to a corresponding detector in a remote detector arr...