# US 9,518,942 B2 · Phase analyzer, phase analysis method, and surface analyzer > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,518,942 B2 - Document ID: US9518942B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/716,984 - Filed: 2015-05-20 - Published: 2015-12-17 - Granted: 2016-12-13 - Earliest claimed: 2014-05-21 - Assignees: JEOL Ltd. - Applicants: JEOL Ltd. - Inventors: Naoki Kato; Masaru Takakura; Norihisa Mori; Shinya Fujita; Shigeru Honda - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9518942B2 ## CPC - G01N 23/2252: Measuring emitted X-rays, e.g. electron probe microanalysis [EPMA] - H01J 37/244: Detectors; Associated components or circuits therefor - H01J 2237/2445: Photon detectors for X-rays, light, e.g. photomultipliers - H01J 2237/2448: Secondary particle detectors - 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) - H01J: ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS (spark-gaps H01T; electric arc lamps H05B31/00; particle accelerators H05H) ## Abstract A phase analyzer includes a principal component analysis section that performs principal component analysis on elemental map data that represents an intensity or concentration distribution corresponding to each element to calculate a principal component score corresponding to each unit area of the elemental map data, a scatter diagram generation section that plots the calculated principal component score to generate a scatter diagram of the principal component score, a peak position detection section that detects a peak position from the scatter diagram, a clustering section that calculates a distance between each point and each peak position within the scatter diagram, and classifies each point within the scatter diagram into a plurality of groups based on the distance, and a phase map generation section that generates a phase map based on classification results of the clustering section. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A phase analyzer comprising: a principal component analysis section that performs principal component analysis on N items of elemental map data that represents an intensity or concentration distribution corresponding to each element and obtains information about N principal components to calculate a principal component score corresponding to each pixel of the elemental map data from the obtained information about the N principal components; a scatter diagram generation section that selects at least two principal components having larger eigenvalues from among the N principal components and plots a point corresponding to the pixel on a coordinate system with coordinate axes indicating principal component scores of the selected principal components to generate a scatter diagram of the principal component score; a peak position detection section that divides the scatter diagram into a plurality of areas, counts a number of data points within each of the plurality of areas to calculate a point density, and detects a peak position based on the point density; a clustering section that calculates an Euclidean distance between each point and each peak position within the scatter diagram, and classifies each point within the scatter diagram into a plurality of groups based on the distance; and a phase map generation section that generates a phase map by providing a color to each point within the scatter diagram when the color is different for each group of the plurality of groups, and by reflecting the color provided to each point within the scatter diagram on the color of each pixel of the elemental map corresponding to each point within the scatter diagram. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The phase analyzer as defined in claim 1, wherein the peak position detection section determines an area among contiguous areas included in the plurality of areas that has a highest point density to be a peak position candidate, and selects the peak position candidate in which the point density is equal to or higher than a threshold value to be the peak position. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The phase analyzer as defined in claim 1, wherein the clustering section classifies each point within the scatter diagram so that each point belongs to a group among the plurality of groups that corresponds to the peak position that is situated at a shortest distance from each point. ### Claim 4 A phase analysis method comprising: a principal component analysis step that performs principal component analysis on N items of elemental map data that represents an intensity or concentration distribution corresponding to each element and obtains information about N principal components to calculate a principal component score corresponding to each pixel of the elemental map data from the obtained information about the N principal components; a scatter diagram generation step that selects at least two principal components having larger eigenvalues from among the N principal components and plots a point corresponding to the pixel on a coordinate system with coordinate axes indicating principal component scores of the selected principal components to generate a scatter diagram of the principal component score; a peak position detection step that divides the scatter diagram into a plurality of areas, counts a number of data points within each of the plurality of areas to calculate a point density, and detects a peak position based on the point density; a clustering step that calculates an Euclidean distance between each point and each peak position within the scatter diagram, and classifies each point within the scatter diagram into a plurality of groups based on the distance; and a phase map generation step that generates a phase map by providing a color to each point within the scatter diagram when the color is different for each group of the plurality of groups, and by reflecting the color provided to each point within the scatter diagram on the color of each pixel of the elemental map corresponding to each point within the scatter diagram. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The phase analysis method as defined in claim 4, wherein the peak position detection step determines an area among contiguous areas included in the plurality of areas that has a highest point density to be a peak position candidate, and selects the peak position candidate in which the point density is equal to or higher than a threshold value to be the peak position. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The phase analysis method as defined in claim 4, wherein the clustering step classifies each point within the scatter diagram so that each point belongs to a group among the plurality of groups that corresponds to the peak position that is situated at a shortest distance from each point. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) A surface analyzer comprising the phase analyzer as defined in claim 1.