Method and apparatus for surface characterization and process control utilizing radiation from desorbed particles

Method for analyzing a solid sample comprising at least one chemical species and having a surface, the method comprising

• (a) exposing at least part of the surface to a beam of probe radiation, of intensity and energy such that the exposed surface area remains solid, to desorb particles from the surface and produce characteristic photon emissions from at least a portion of the desorbed particles;
• (b) detecting at least a portion of the photon emissions in the infrared, visible, or ultraviolet part of the electromagnetic spectrum so as to obtain electrical signals, and
• (c) processing the signals so as to obtain at least a portion of a characteristic spectrum, the wavelengths at which spectral peaks occur indicating the identity of the species, and the intensities of the peaks indicating the relative concentrations of the species,
• characterized in that
• (d) the probe radiation consists of low-momentum radiation, "low-momentum radiation" being radiation that transfers negligible linear momentum to particles in the surface.

Apparatus for analyzing a solid sample comprising at least one chemical species and having a surface, the apparatus comprising

• (a) means for producing a beam of probe radiation,
• (b) means for exposing at least part of the surface to the beam of probe radiation to desorb particles from the surface and produce characteristic photon emissions from at least a portion of the desorbed particles,
• (c) means for detecting at least a portion of the photon emissions in the infrared, visible, or ultraviolet part of the electromagnetic spectrum so as to obtain electrical signals, and
• (d) means for processing the signals so as to obtain at least a portion of a characteristic spectrum, the wavelengths at which spectral peaks occur indicating the identity of the chemical species, and the relative intensities of the peaks indicating the relative concentrations of the species,
• CHARACTERIZED IN THAT
• (e) the means for producing a beam of probe radiation produce a beam of low-momentum radiation of intensity and energy such that the exposed surface area remains solid, "low-momentum radiation" being radiation that transfers negligible linear momentum to particles in the surface.

Method for controlling a manufacturing process comprising a multiplicity of manufacturing steps, the method comprising

• (a) exposing at least a part of a surface of a solid article to a beam of probe radiation of intensity and energy such that the exposed surface area remains solid,
• (b) detecting responsive characteristic electromagnetic radiation in the infrared, visible, or UV part of the spectrum emitted by excited particles desorbed from the surface,
• CHARACTERIZED IN THAT
• (c) the beam of probe radiation consists of low-momentum radiation, "low-momentum radiation" being radiation that transfers negligible linear momentum to particles in the surface, and
• FURTHER CHARACTERIZED BY
• (d) adjusting at least one of the manufacturing steps in response to the detected characteristic electromagnetic radiation.

Method for manufacturing an article having a solid surface, the method comprising a multiplicity of manufacturing steps, with the article comprising during at least one manufacturing step a processing layer disposed on a substrate layer, the method comprising

• (a) exposing selected areas of the processing layer to processing radiation adapted to cause a difference in reaction rate between exposed and unexposed areas of the processing layer with a reactive medium, and
• (b) exposing the processing layer to the reactive medium for a time sufficient to remove the processing layer disposed over selected areas of the substrate layer, characterized in that the method further comprises
• (c) exposing at least a part of the surface of the article to a beam of low-momentum probe radiation, of intensity and energy such that the exposed surface area remains solid, "low-momentum radiation" being radiation that transfers negligible linear momentum to particles in the surface,
• (d) detecting responsive characteristic electromagnetic radiation in the infrared, visible, or UV part of the spectrum emitted by excited particles desorbed from the surface, and
• (e) adjusting at least one manufacturing step in response to the detected characteristic electromagnetic radiation.