Defect detection using thermal laser stimulation and atomic force microscopy

A method comprising:

• conducting a first scan of a device under testing with an atomic force probe unit to determine locations of defects in the device under test;
• conducting a second scan of the device with an optical laser unit at a specific location determined by the atomic force probe unit to generate localized heating in the device under test, wherein the localized heating is indicative of a specific defect in the device;
• and
• using the optical laser unit to perform a third scan of the specific location determined by the atomic force probe unit to obtain a specific location for the defect.

An inspection tool comprising:

• an optical thermal laser stimulation unit comprising a near-IR laser and an optical system having a rotating lens attachment with a plurality of objective lenses, wherein the optical thermal laser stimulation unit generates a first scan image and final image;
• an atomic force probe unit comprising a laser, a photodiode, a plurality of scanning cantilever probes, a detector unit, and a feedback system, wherein the atomic force probe unit generates a second scan image;
• and
• a processor coupled to the optical thermal laser stimulation unit and the atomic force probe unit, wherein the processor is configured to provide a fault location analysis for a device under test.