# US 12,181,425 B2 · Image pickup device and image generation method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 12,181,425 B2 - Document ID: US12181425B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/880,764 - Filed: 2022-08-04 - Published: 2023-05-11 - Granted: 2024-12-31 - Earliest claimed: 2021-11-05 - Assignees: Kioxia Corporation - Applicants: Kioxia Corporation - Inventors: Takeshi Yamane - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12181425B2 ## CPC - G01N 23/083: the radiation being X-rays - G01N 23/04: and forming images of the material - G01N 23/18: Investigating the presence of flaws defects or foreign matter - G01N 2223/6116: semiconductor wafer - G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q) ## Abstract An image pickup device includes a disk with an aperture through which X-rays can transmit. The device includes a vacuum suction ring having an inner peripheral ring and an outer peripheral ring having different heights, which fixes a position of the aperture with respect to a subject. The device includes a rotation stage that holds the subject and the disk with an aperture fixed by the vacuum suction ring and can rotate at a desired angle about a rotation axis along a direction perpendicular to a surface of the subject, and a one-dimensional detector in which line-shaped pixels are disposed at a predetermined pixel pitch. An imaging mirror forms an image of X-rays transmitted through the subject and the aperture on the one-dimensional detector. A control analysis unit corrects coordinates of an image intensity profile and reconstructs an image of the subject from the image intensity profile after the correction. ## Claims ### Claim 1 An image pickup device comprising: a sample holding plate having an aperture, the aperture arranged to transmit imaging light applied to a subject; a fixing member having a first surface arranged to fix the subject, and a second surface arranged to fix the sample holding plate, the second surface formed in parallel with the first surface at a height different from that of the first surface, and the fixing member arranged to fix a position of the aperture with respect to the subject; a rotation member arranged to hold the subject and the sample holding plate fixed by the fixing member, and the rotation member configured to rotate at a desired angle about a rotation axis along a direction perpendicular to a surface of the subject; a detector; a plurality of line-shaped pixels having a line-shaped light receiving surface extending in a first direction disposed side by side on the detector in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction; an imaging optical member configured to form an image of the imaging light transmitting through the subject and the aperture on a detection surface of the detector; and an image processor configured to correct coordinates of an image intensity profile detected by the detector and to reconstruct an image of the subject from the image intensity profile after correction. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein a distance, from an upper surface of the subject fixed to the first surface to the second surface, is equal to or less than a value obtained by dividing a square of a pixel pitch of the line-shaped pixel of the detector by a product of a square of a magnification of the imaging optical member and a wavelength of the imaging light. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the line-shaped pixel is a superconducting single photon detector. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the image processor is configured to correct the coordinates of the image intensity profile based on center coordinates of the image intensity profile detected by the detector. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the image processor is configured to calculate a reference image intensity profile by integrating the image of the subject reconstructed from the image intensity profile in a direction of an angle at which the subject is rotated by the rotation member, and correct the coordinates of the image intensity profile based on the reference image intensity profile. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The image pickup device according to claim 5, wherein the reconstruction of the image of the subject and the correction of the coordinates of the image intensity profile are repeatedly executed until a difference between the reference image intensity profile and the image intensity profile falls within a preset allowable range. ### Claim 7 An image generation method of irradiating a subject, which is fixedly placed at a predetermined distance from a sample holding plate, with imaging light, detecting imaging light transmitted through an aperture formed in the sample holding plate in the imaging light transmitted through the subject each time the subject is rotated, generating an image intensity profile for each rotation angle while rotating the subject by a predetermined angle, and reconstructing an image of the subject by using the image intensity profile, the image generation method comprising: calculating center coordinates of the image intensity profile for all the rotation angles; correcting coordinates of the image intensity profile by regarding the center coordinates as coordinate origin points, for all the rotation angles; and reconstructing the image of the subject by using the image intensity profile after the coordinate correction. ### Claim 8 An image generation method of irradiating a subject, which is fixedly placed at a predetermined distance from a sample holding plate, with imaging light, detecting imaging light transmitted through an aperture formed in the sample holding plate in the imaging light transmitted through the subject each time the subject is rotated, and generating an image intensity profile for each rotation angle while rotating the subject by a predetermined angle, and reconstructing an image of the subject by using the image intensity profile, the image generation method comprising: calculating a reference image intensity profile by integrating the image of the subject reconstructed from the image intensity profile in a direction of an angle at which the subject is rotated by a rotation member; and correcting coordinates of the image intensity profile based on the reference image intensity profile, for all the rotation angles. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the image pickup device is a transmission x-ray microscope. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the fixing member includes a vacuum suction ring arranged to hold the subject. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the detector includes an x-ray detector. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the detector is a one dimensional detector. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging optical member includes an imaging mirror. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging processor is configured to reconstruct the image of the subject by performing inverse Fourier transform on a Fourier transformed image of the transmission image of the subject. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the imaging processor is configured to reconstruct the image of the subject using projection-slice theorem.