Features sizes in integrated circuits (ICs) are often at the scale of 10 nm and are ever shrinking. ICs appearing in today's computers and hand held devices are perhaps the most prominent examples. These smaller feature sizes demand equivalent advances in fast and accurate dimensional metrology for both development and manufacturing. Techniques in use and continuing to be developed include X-ray based techniques, optical scattering and of course the electron and scanning probe microscopy techniques. Each of these techniques have their advantages and limitations. Here the use of small angle electron beam scattering measurements in a reflection mode (RSAES) to characterize the dimensions and the shape of nanostructures on flat and opaque substrates is demonstrated using both experimental and theoretical evidence. In RSAES, focused electrons are scattered at angles smaller than 1° with the assistance of electron optics typically used in transmission electron microscopy. A proof-of-concept experiment is combined with rigorous electron reflection simulations to demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of RSAES as a method of non-destructive measurement of shapes of features less than 10 nm in size on flat and opaque substrates.

中文翻译：

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反射小角电子散射表征不透明基材上的纳米结构

集成电路 (IC) 中的特征尺寸通常为 10 纳米，并且还在不断缩小。出现在当今计算机和手持设备中的 IC 可能是最突出的例子。这些较小的特征尺寸需要在开发和制造的快速和准确尺寸计量方面取得同等进步。正在使用和继续开发的技术包括基于 X 射线的技术、光学散射，当然还有电子和扫描探针显微镜技术。这些技术中的每一种都有其优点和局限性。在这里，使用实验和理论证据证​​明了使用反射模式 (RSAES) 中的小角度电子束散射测量来表征平坦和不透明基板上纳米结构的尺寸和形状。在 RSAES 中，在透射电子显微镜中通常使用的电子光学器件的帮助下，聚焦的电子以小于 1° 的角度散射。概念验证实验与严格的电子反射模拟相结合，以证明 RSAES 作为一种在平坦和不透明基板上对尺寸小于 10 nm 的特征形状进行无损测量的方法的效率和准确性。