NanoCalc Manual Nano Calc V3

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NanoCalc

Manual

Version 3.0.2

31.7.2008

CONTENTS
CONTENTS...................................................................................................................................................................................1
1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................................4
1.1
Measurement setup.........................................................................................................................................................5
1.2
Measurement signal........................................................................................................................................................5
1.3
Physical principle ...........................................................................................................................................................6
2
Installation..............................................................................................................................................................................7
3
Product support ......................................................................................................................................................................7
4
Getting started ........................................................................................................................................................................8
5
Usermodes of NanoCalc.......................................................................................................................................................11
5.1
SCOUT mode ...............................................................................................................................................................11
5.2
Internal mode................................................................................................................................................................11
5.3
Combiversion with NanoCalc ......................................................................................................................................11
5.4
List of all menus and buttons........................................................................................................................................12
6
Basic features of NanoCalc ..................................................................................................................................................13
6.1
Reference......................................................................................................................................................................13
6.2
Measure ........................................................................................................................................................................13
6.3
Simulate........................................................................................................................................................................14
6.4
Analyze.........................................................................................................................................................................15
6.5
Continuous mode..........................................................................................................................................................15
6.6
Measurement mode ......................................................................................................................................................15
6.7
Fitness...........................................................................................................................................................................16
7
Detailed features of NanoCalc..............................................................................................................................................17
7.1
Main menu “File” .........................................................................................................................................................17
7.1.1
Load file ...............................................................................................................................................................17
7.1.2
Load layer recipe ..................................................................................................................................................17
7.1.3
Save as file............................................................................................................................................................18
7.1.4
Save as layer recipe ..............................................................................................................................................18
7.1.5
Save reference and dark........................................................................................................................................19
7.1.6
Load reference and dark .......................................................................................................................................19
7.1.7
Load last measurement .........................................................................................................................................19
7.1.8
Load last saved file...............................................................................................................................................19
7.1.9
Import raw data ....................................................................................................................................................19
7.1.10
Export raw data ....................................................................................................................................................19
7.1.11
Print report............................................................................................................................................................19
7.1.12
Show Scout report ................................................................................................................................................20
7.1.13
Exit .......................................................................................................................................................................20
7.1.14
Function keys .......................................................................................................................................................20
7.2
Main menu “Screen” ....................................................................................................................................................20
7.2.1
Spectrometer data .................................................................................................................................................20
7.2.2
Hardware settings .................................................................................................................................................23
7.2.3
Limits ...................................................................................................................................................................23
7.2.4
Dispersion.............................................................................................................................................................25
7.2.5
Pixel resolution.....................................................................................................................................................25
7.2.6
Show intensity ......................................................................................................................................................26
7.3
Main menu “Data Editor”.............................................................................................................................................27
7.3.1
Modify old .dat-files.............................................................................................................................................27
7.3.2
Save DAT-files.....................................................................................................................................................27
7.3.3
Create Cauchy .dat-file .........................................................................................................................................28
7.3.4
Create EMA dat-file .............................................................................................................................................28
7.4
Main menu “Externals” ................................................................................................................................................30
7.4.1
Mapping ...............................................................................................................................................................30
7.4.2
Result List.............................................................................................................................................................35
7.4.3
Analyze mapped data ...........................................................................................................................................36
7.4.4
Structure of .map-file............................................................................................................................................37
7.4.5
Online/multipoint measurements..........................................................................................................................37
7.4.6
Analyze online/multipoint data ............................................................................................................................40
7.4.7
Structure of .onl-file .............................................................................................................................................40

7.4.8
RS232 ...................................................................................................................................................................41
7.4.9
Vision system .......................................................................................................................................................41
7.5
Main menu “Options” ..................................................................................................................................................42
7.5.1
Change buttons .....................................................................................................................................................42
7.5.2
Roughness ............................................................................................................................................................43
7.5.3
Data manipulation ................................................................................................................................................44
7.5.4
Fit parameters .......................................................................................................................................................44
7.5.5
Some setups..........................................................................................................................................................45
7.5.6
Measurement mode ..............................................................................................................................................45
7.5.7
Operator mode......................................................................................................................................................45
7.5.8
Change colours .....................................................................................................................................................47
7.6
Main menu “Version” ..................................................................................................................................................47
7.7
Chart and chartdesigner ................................................................................................................................................47
7.7.1
Plot .......................................................................................................................................................................48
8
Special features for “SCOUT mode” ...................................................................................................................................49
8.1
Main menu “File” .........................................................................................................................................................49
8.1.1
Change layer recipe ..............................................................................................................................................49
8.2
Main menu “Screen” ....................................................................................................................................................50
8.3
Main menu “Options” ..................................................................................................................................................50
8.3.1
Fit parameters .......................................................................................................................................................50
8.3.2
Some setups..........................................................................................................................................................50
9
Special features for “internal mode” ....................................................................................................................................51
9.1
Edit structure button .....................................................................................................................................................51
9.1.1
General .................................................................................................................................................................51
9.1.2
Catalogues ............................................................................................................................................................53
9.1.3
Materials...............................................................................................................................................................53
9.1.4
Thickness..............................................................................................................................................................53
9.1.5
Estimates ..............................................................................................................................................................53
9.1.6
Fixed limits...........................................................................................................................................................53
9.1.7
Narrow Limits ......................................................................................................................................................53
9.1.8
Wide Limits..........................................................................................................................................................54
9.1.9
User limits ............................................................................................................................................................54
9.1.10
Number of layers ..................................................................................................................................................54
9.2
Main menu “File” .........................................................................................................................................................55
9.2.1
Pixel resolution.....................................................................................................................................................55
9.3
Main menu “Options” ..................................................................................................................................................55
9.3.1
Data manipulations...............................................................................................................................................55
9.3.2
Roughness ............................................................................................................................................................55
10
Experimental setups and problems ...................................................................................................................................56
10.1 General .........................................................................................................................................................................56
10.1.1
Experimental setup ...............................................................................................................................................56
10.1.2
Reference spectrum ..............................................................................................................................................56
10.1.3
Maximum intensity...............................................................................................................................................56
10.1.4
Polarization...........................................................................................................................................................56
10.1.5
Angle of incidence................................................................................................................................................56
10.1.6
Signal to noise ratio ..............................................................................................................................................57
10.1.7
Stray light .............................................................................................................................................................57
10.1.8
Fiber .....................................................................................................................................................................57
10.1.9
Absorbing media ..................................................................................................................................................57
10.1.10
Passwords .........................................................................................................................................................57
10.1.11
Function buttons ...............................................................................................................................................57
10.2 How to measure very thin films ...................................................................................................................................58
10.3 How to measure very thick films..................................................................................................................................58
10.4 How to measure rough, thick films ..............................................................................................................................59
11
Physical explanations .......................................................................................................................................................60
11.1 Refraction index and absorption indices.......................................................................................................................60
11.2 Cauchy coefficients ......................................................................................................................................................60
11.3 Interference...................................................................................................................................................................61
12
Thinfilm.ini ......................................................................................................................................................................62

13
Appendix A ......................................................................................................................................................................64
13.1 Installing and Changing the settings on a A/D converter and Interfaces......................................................................64
13.1.1
ADC1000 ISA-bus A/D Converter.......................................................................................................................64
13.2 DAQ-700 PCMCIA A/D Converter .............................................................................................................................68
13.3 NanoCalc-2000 Systems with ADC1000-USB Installation .........................................................................................71
13.3.1
Trouble Shooting with ADC-1000-USB ..............................................................................................................72
13.3.2
Known problems under Windows95 and Windows2000 .....................................................................................72
14
APPENDIX B ..................................................................................................................................................................74
14.1 NanoCalc-Quick-Setup.................................................................................................................................................74

1 Introduction
NanoCalc is a software to extract thickness and optical parameters of thin, transparent layers on different
substrates. NanoCalc uses Ocean Optics / Mikropack microspectrometers.
NanoCalc offers a lot of different options like:
• Simulation and measurement of multilayer systems (weakly absorbing or transparent)
• Optional: A powerful software engine in the background (“SCOUT”)
• An easy-to-use “internal “ mode for thickness extraction
• A graphical user interface that is very easy to use (recipes)
• Simulation of up to 10 layers (weakly absorbing or transparent)
• Highly accurate thickness measurements between some nanometers up to about 250 µm
• Extraction of dispersion n(λ) and k(λ), roughness, EMA-fractions and other layer parameters, if using
SCOUT add-on
• 3D - mapping mode with a motor driven xy(z)-stage (=function of position)
• Online/multipoint measurements (=function of time)
• Remote control via OLE-commands from external software
• Video
• Combination with ellipsometry (“ElliCalc”)
It is possible to measure in reflection mode (e.g. SiO2-Layer on silicon) and in transmission mode (e.g. Ti2O3
layer on a transparent BK7 glass).
Measurement principle
A thin layer is vertically illuminated with white light via a fiber and the spectrometer measures the reflected (or
transmitted) light as a function of wavelength. NanoCalc software determines thickness of the layer.
NanoCalc has 2 different modes of operation:
1. data extraction via an optional software tool called “SCOUT”. This SCOUT software is very powerful and
works more or less in the background. SCOUT is able to handle very complicated dispersion curves, but
needs some experience with optical modeling. NanoCalc acts as a user interface to simplify the data
extraction process. Even without deep understanding of the underlying physics it is possible to measure
complex layer systems by using a recipe concept. A layer recipe has to be loaded and the rest is a “onebutton-solution” (of course there must be an expert in the beginning to establish this recipe. Ask your software
supplier…)
2. data extraction by NanoCalc itself (without SCOUT). In this “internal mode” it is very easy to extract
thicknesses and –to some extent- dispersion values without optical modeling. Recipes may be used, but even
without recipes it is extremely simple to get results. This “internal mode” does not need an expert, but it is not
as powerful as the “SCOUT mode”.

1.1

Measurement setup

AVS-Lightsource

AVS-Spectrometer

NanoCalc-2000

Fibercable
Thin Layer

A broadband white light source is reflected by a thin layer under vertical incidence (after a calibration
measurement). The reflected intensity as a function of wavelength is measured by a spectrometer, a PC extracts
the wanted information.

1.2

Measurement signal

The typical modulated signal of such a spectroscopic thin film measurement might look like this (after some data
manipulations):

NanoCalc uses this signal to extract thickness (eventually also dispersion) for this (SiO2 ) layer on Si.

1.3

Physical principle

The measurement principle of NanoCalc is the well-known fact of interference of light in thin layers. Light is
reflected (and transmitted), resulting in phase shifts and superposition of amplitudes and finally adding up to
different intensities for different wavelengths (=different colors). You see these colors in every-day-life, if you
observe the colors of thin oil films on water or if you carefully observe the colored anti-reflective coating on lenses
of cameras or binoculars.

layer

substrate

information:
in reality: nearly vertical incidence

transmitted (and
absorbed)
intensity
After some calculations NanoCalc will show a result (here: 499.4 nm) as the best fit to the experimental data (red
curve=measured signal, black curve = theoretical curve):

Installation

NanoCalc (and SCOUT) is delivered on a CD-ROM.
Insert the CD-ROM in your CD-ROM drive and run „NanoCalc-Setup.exe “. Do not call “NanoCalc.exe” at this
level, if you happen to find it in some subdirectory.
NanoCalc will ask you for a directory (and propose a directory „c:\programs\NanoCalc“).
If you prefer other names, change this to "c:\MyPrograms\NanoCalc” or any convenient directory name).
Deinstallation:
If you want to deinstall NanoCalc from your computer, go to „system control“, „software“ and deinstall NanoCalc.
Do NOT just delete it because NanoCalc adds some files to your windows\system directory and to the registry !!
Always de-install the software properly.

Product support

Please contact your local distributor for product support. Here you can find additional information:
www.mikropack.de

Getting started

After installation of your hardware and software you should be ready to make your first measurements.
First example = without SCOUT-software:
1. You need a blank silicon wafer as a reference and a wafer with a thin layer (e.g. 495 nm SiO2 on Si). It is a
good idea to use a special “step wafer” with different oxide thickness as a first test or for calibration purposes.
Please ask your hardware supplier for information about step wafers.
Choose an experimental setup with a fiber or a microscope.
2. Then insert your reference wafer, switch on your lamp, start NanoCalc and click on the button „continuous
mode“.

This button turns RED. Then click on the button “Reference” (this button turns RED as well) and you should
see the spectrum of your lamp as it measured repeatedly in short time intervals.
You should observe a spectral region comparable to the data of your spectrometer (e.g. 250 -1100 nm,
depending on your grating).

It is important to use a “good” amplitude of this signal = not too high and not too low. This means:
a. there should be no saturation of the CCD-detector (=a flat region) in the signal.
b. try to get a signal height of about 50-90% of the scale height for oxide samples (and similar) and about
20% for metallic samples. The exact value is of no concern as long as your signal in the measurement of
the real sample does not cause saturation.
There are several possibilities to get a “good” signal amplitude:
a. increase or decrease integration time (with the buttons ±1 ms or ±10 ms) to adjust the signal between
20-90%.
b. or adjust the lamp intensity (e.g.NanoCalc-2000-VIS/NIR), if this is possible
3.

Then click on the button „continuous mode“ again to turn off the continuous mode. Both buttons turn to
BLACK again. The last reference measurement is saved internally and you can see it on the screen. From
now on there is no need to repeat this reference measurement unless you like to control repeatability etc.
BUT: from now on you should not change the lamp intensity or the distance to your sample. Your sample
should also have the same height as the reference sample.

4. Put your wafer with the thin film onto the Stage and press the button „Measure“. Pay attention not to have dust
particles in the region where you measure.
You should get a spectrum like this (with a different numbers of extrema or even no extrema).

Then press the button „Edit Structure“ and choose the correct parameters for your layer setup:

number of layers
=1
catalogue for substrate= semiconductors
catalogue for layer 1 = oxides
material for substrate = Si
material for layer 1
= SiO2_(therm)
estimated thickness = 500 nm
narrow limits

It is not important to choose perfect values for thickness and estimation limits at the moment.
When should you use “narrow limits” or “wide limits” or “user limits” ?
- if you have no knowledge about the thickness of your layer (but layer thickness should be MORE than
about 5 micrometers in thickness), choose "user limits"
- if you have no knowledge about the thickness of your layer (but layer thickness should be LESS than
about 5 micrometers in thickness), choose "wide limits"
- if you have GOOD knowledge about the thickness of your layer (within about 50-100 nm), choose "narrow
limits"

After changing the layer structure please check the spectral range again.
Use a smaller range for a thicker layer (and shifted more to VIS/NIR), and a range as wide as possible for thin
layers, e.g. 250 - 1100nm.

Press the button „Analyze“. The result for the thickness of the oxide is shown in the upper right text window.

Second example = with SCOUT-software:
Now it is assumed that you own the SCOUT software and want to use this powerful tool for extracting data. This
mode does not work, if SCOUT is not installed on your PC !
1. Get a reference spectrum in the same way as described above in steps 1 – 3
2. Now load an appropriate recipe with the menu “File\Load recipe”. You will be asked for the name of the
recipe. In the case of an oxidized silicon wafer we use the recipe: “Cauchy on Si.lrc” which is in the list of
delivered recipes. This recipe contains a Cauchy model for the dispersion n(λ) of SiO2 and will also deliver
the oxide thickness.
After loading this recipe you can see the layer structure. The button EditStructure is still accessible, but it is
only possible to change the reference material. All details of the layer system and all extraction limits etc
are contained in the SCOUT recipe and can only be modified within SCOUT (which needs some
knowledge of optics and some experience with the SCOUT software)
3. Now press the button „Analyze“. The result for the thickness and the refraction index of the oxide is shown
in the upper right text window. (comment: the thickness values for measurements with and without SCOUT
are slightly different because a Cauchy model is not the same dispersion as table values)

Usermodes of NanoCalc

NanoCalc has two different usermodes, the “SCOUT-mode” and the “NanoCalc internal mode”. At the moment
the “internal-mode” is the normal mode, the “SCOUT mode” may be used but an extra SCOUT software has to be
purchased.

5.1

SCOUT mode

NanoCalc works as a graphical user interface for a sophisticated film software “SCOUT” working in the
background.
The whole process is necessarily driven by recipes.
SCOUT sc2-recipe

SCOUT
calculation

•

•
•
•

NanoCalc lrc-recipe

NanoCalc:
Measure spectrum
Display results

reflectometer

within NanoCalc you have to load a “recipe”, e.g. “SiO2 on Si.lrc”. This ASCII-readable recipe
contains a link to a SCOUT recipe like “SiO2 on Si.sc2”. All necessary layer informations are
contained in this SCOUT recipe and are read by NanoCalc, but only for display purposes.
NanoCalc now controls the hardware, measures the sample and sends the measured reflectivityvalues to SCOUT (via a file NC_Data.xy in directory “NanoCalc\Internal_Files”).
SCOUT does the calculation of all parameters
the results are given back to NanoCalc via OLE-connection. The main fit parameters (thickness,
refraction, absorption, roughness and EMA-fractions) are displayed by NanoCalc, as well as all other
SCOUT fit parameters.

This SCOUT mode relies totally on good SCOUT recipes. So there must be someone (you or the administrator or
Mikropack) in the background being familiar with the details and the physics of SCOUT. The advantage is a “onebutton-reflectometry” for the user and an enormous calculation power !

5.2

Internal mode

In this (normal) internal mode the user can create own layer stacks and does not need the external SCOUT
software at all. There is no need to work with recipes, but is is recommended. BUT: At the moment only thickness
values can be extracted, in one of the next releases also dispersion extraction will be possible (not as exact as
SCOUT, but maybe good enough)
NanoCalc lrc-recipe

NanoCalc:
define layer stack
measure spectrum
calculate thickness
display thickness

5.3

reflectometer

Combiversion with NanoCalc

If you bought a combiversion ElliCalc + NanoCalc (= ellipsometry and reflectometry) you will see an extra menu
“version”. Here you can switch from one application to the other.

5.4

List of all menus and buttons

Main menu

Sub-menu

FILES menu

Load file
Load Scout layer recipe
Load NanoCalc layer recipe
Save as file
Save as layer recipe
Save as reference system
Change layer recipe
Save reference and dark
Load reference and dark
Export raw data
Import raw data
Show SCOUT results
Print report
Exit
Spectrometer data
Limits
Dispersion
Pixel resolution
Show intensity
Mapping
Analyze mapped data
Online/multipoint
Analyze online data
RS232
Video camera
Show plot
Change buttons
Roughness
Data manipulations
Fit parameters
Some setups (overflow)
Some setups (change colors)
Merasurement mode
Operator mode(Admin/User)
NanoCalc_1
NanoCalc_10nk
ElliCalc
Contents
About

SCREEN menu

EXTERNALS

OPTIONS

VERSION

HELP
EDIT STRUCTURE

SCOUT
mode
x
x

Internal
mode
x
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Basic features of NanoCalc

6.1

Reference

This button „freezes“ the reference spectrum and sets internal flags („there is a valid reference spectrum“). So this
spectrum is valid until you decide to measure again.
hint:
Pay attention not to run into saturation of the spectrometer ! (= a (nearly) horizontal part in the spectrum very near
to the upper limit of the plot). There is an option in menu “data extraction” to give a warning.
If you want to measure precisely (especially for extremely thin layers) repeat this reference from time to time (drift
of lamps and so on).

If you use a double spectrometer, you have to adjust the crossover wavelength. Below this wavelength the data are
collected from spectrometer channel A, above they are collected from spectrometer channel B.
You may use a different material for referencing than your substrate (but pay attention: do not run into saturation
in either mode !)

6.2

Measure

This routine measures the spectrum of your test device and performs the following calculation:

Reflectivity:

Meas − D
⋅ Rsubstrate
Ref − D

With:
Meas = measured spectrum
Ref
= reference spectrum
D
= dark spectrum
RSubstrate= reflectivity of an uncoated substrate

As a result you get the theoretical reflectance (or transmittance) of your coated substrate.
If you are using a SCOUT-recipe the the measured data are transferred to SCOUT. This takes some time ….

6.3

Simulate

This routine simulates a spectrum from the
estimated thickness from „Edit Structure“.
The structure that is simulated may be
changed with button „Edit Structure“, if you
do not use SCOUT. Otherwise you need
SCOUT experience.
Hint:
If you want to have a short check which
structure is simulated at the moment, put the
mouse cursor over the appropriate layer for
some seconds and you see the layer
thickness.
OR:
Leave your mouse cursor for some seconds
over the button SIMULATE and look at the
text in the status bar.

If you are using a SCOUT-recipe the calculation is done by SCOUT. This takes some time to transfer the data…..

6.4

Analyze

This routine analyzes a spectrum (either simulated or measured) within the data extraction limits.
The structure that is simulated may be changed with button „Edit Structure“, if you do not use SCOUT.
Hint:
To have a short check which structure is
simulated at the moment, put the mouse
cursor over the appropriate layer for
some seconds and you see the layer
thickness.
OR:
Leave your mouse cursor for some
seconds over the button SIMULATE and
look at the text in the status bar.

If you are using a SCOUT-recipe the calculation is done by SCOUT. This takes some time to transfer the data…..

6.5

Continuous mode

The continuous button switches between continuous: ON (=red button) and “continuous: OFF” (button =black). To
use this option you have to switch either to “Reference” or “Measure” or “Analyze”. Then there will be a continuous
measurement of the reference signal (very useful to adjust the intensity of your lamp) or there will be a continuous
measurement or even analyzing of your signal (very useful if you want to move your sample to different positions).
All others buttons of NanoCalc are disabled until you finish the continuous mode.
You may adjust integration time by using the buttons -1/-10 /+1/+10 msec (separate for channel A and channel B
spectrometer)

6.6

Measurement mode

There are different data extraction modes in NanoCalc (internal mode):
Full search
NanoCalc uses the lower and upper limit of your guess in EditStructure and tries to find the best fit to the measured
values by testing all simulated curves in narrow intervals of 1 nanometer.
This is the preferable method in most cases, although it is not optimized concerning speed.
Fast search
NanoCalc extracts information from the (guessed) values in EditStructure to calculate thicknesses as precise as
possible. The search region is still determined by your choice of narrow, wide or user limits.
This is the fastest method in most cases, nevertheless it may fail.

FFT
This method is very fast and applicable only for relatively thick layers, but not very precise !! It may be refined by
pressing the check box “use extended search after FFT or failure” in menu FitParameters.
You will see the fouriertransformed spectrum on the screen with different peaks. As your original signal is NOT a
sum of harmonic functions, there are peaks that do not correspond to a layer thickness (e.g. typically there is a
peak corresponding more or less to the sum of all thicknesses). All peaks that can be identified are marked with a
colored circle.
The scale in FFT mode is a scale of optical thickness (=product of geometrical thickness and refraction index), not
of geometrical thickness. If you SHIFT+Click on the values of refraction index (below the word “SETUP” in main
menu, the FFT scale will be recalculated for the value of the corresponding layer.

You have the choice between different options in menu EditStructure ("FixedLimits", "NarrowLimits", "WideLimits"
and "UserLimits")
"FixedLimitsMode"
In this mode the values of low and high limits of your estimate are made equal to the thickness. This means that
this layer is regarded as perfectly well-known.
Such a layer is excluded from data extraction algorithms.
"NarrowLimitsMode"
NanoCalc uses the value of your thickness estimation to calculate low and high limits which are quite narrow
(about ± 100 nm). A search is done ONLY within these limits. If your limits were to narrow this search will fail
and you have to try wider limits (like WideLimitsMode)
"WideLimitsMode"
The low limit and high limit is set according to the Editstructure setup menu:
1. relative wide limits: a symmetrical region is given, like ± 500 nm
2. absolute wide limits: the values of lower and upper wide limits are given as absolute values
In any case: a search is done ONLY within these limits. This means that the user does not need any knowledge
about the thickness. This option MAY be slow (but not necessarily !)
"UserLimitsMode"
NanoCalc fits the spectrum between low and high limits which were input by the user. Here the maximum thickness
is 300 micrometers.

6.7

Fitness

Any extraction of parameters is accompanied by a value of "fitness". This is the sum of the mean square
deviations between measured and simulated curve (normalized to the range of extraction). The fitness is a rough
guide whether your thickness value is "good" or not.
In the file “Thinfilm.ini” you will find 3 entries in section [fit]:
Failure_RedLevel=1
Failure_YellowLevel=0.1
RYG_LevelsAreDisplayed=False
If you change the variable RYG_LevelsAreDisplayed from “False” to “True” (in main menu “Fitparameters”), the
usual rainbow pattern on the screen will disappear and a simple color will show up.
• If the fitness is below Failure_YellowLevel=0.1 you will see a GREEN color.
• If the fitness is between Failure_YellowLevel=0.1 and Failure_RedLevel=1 you will see a
YELLOW color.
• If the fitness is above Failure_RedLevel=0.1 you will see a RED color
Attention:
If you measure very thick layers (with a good correlation between maxima positions, but bad correlation between
signal heights) you may end up with high values of fitness, but nevertheless the thickness results may be o.k.

Detailed features of NanoCalc

7.1

Main menu “File”

Internal mode

SCOUT mode

7.1.1 Load file
(internal mode only)
This routine loads a measured or simulated spectrum that has been saved earlier (extension: .nan). Do not change
the extension .nan.
It is assumed that all .nan-files are in the default directory “NanoCalc\data\nan_Files”, but you can change the
directory path to any other directory on your PC.
The *.nan-file is an ASCII file that contains most parameters of the software and the measured or simulated values
of reflectance (or transmittance) as a function of wavelength (or pixel) within the plot limits.
If you load a recipe instead of a *.nan–file you will not see any curve on the screen, but a change in the setup or
the limits. The only difference between a recipe and a *.nan-file is the additional list of data values.

Load layer recipe
7.1.2
(internal mode and SCOUT mode)
This routine loads a layer recipe that has been saved earlier (extension: .lrc). Do not change the extension .lrc.
In SCOUT mode you may either load another SCOUT recipe (“load Scout layer recipe”) or you may switch to
NanoCalcs internal mode (“Load NanoCalc layer recipe”). See the screenshots above.
In SCOUT mode all buttons captions are in italic, otherwise in normal.
It is assumed that all .lrc-files are in the default directory “NanoCalc\recipes\layer_recipes”, but you can change
the directory path to any other directory on your PC (provided that you did not use "UseLastFilenames_NC=False" in section [Filenames_NC] in Thinfilm.ini).

There is a section [Scout] in this layer recipe with an entry for "Scout_Recipename_NC". This entry is a link to the
corresponding SCOUT .sc2-recipe in the directory "c:\programs\scout\scout_sc2_recipes" (or similar directory
name).
If this linked .sc2-recipe is existent, SCOUT will be used for calculations = “SCOUT mode”. If this link is empty,
NanoCalc will calculate without SCOUT = “internal mode” (at the moment only for thickness !)
Example for SCOUT-mode (in ellipsometry):
[Scout]
Scout_DirPath=c:\programs\scout
ScoutStopTime=15
Scout_RecipeName_NC=SiO2 (table) on Si.sc2
Scout_RecipeName_EC=
Example for NanoCalc internal mode:
[Scout]
Scout_DirPath=c:\programs\scout
ScoutStopTime=15
Scout_RecipeName_EC=
Scout_RecipeName_NC=
The *.lrc-file is an ASCII file that contains most parameters of the software, but NO measured or simulated values
of psi/delta (or tan(psi) /cos(delta)) as a function of the wavelength.
If you load a recipe you will not see any curve on the screen, but a change in the setup or the limits.

7.1.3 Save as file
(internal mode only)
This routine saves the measured or simulated file as an ASCII file with the extension .nan. The name of the file
may be chosen arbitrarily. Do not use any other extension than .nan.
The *.nan-file is an ASCII file which contains most parameters of the installation and reflectivity R(λ) as a function
of wavelength (or pixel) within the plot limits.
7.1.4 Save as layer recipe
(internal mode only)
This routine saves all layer and screen settings as an ASCII file with the extension .lrc. The name of the file may be
chosen arbitrarily. Do not use any other extension than .lrc.
The *.lrc-file is an ASCII file which does NOT contain and reflectivity R(λ) as a function of wavelength (or pixel)
within the plot limits.

7.1.5 Save reference and dark
(internal mode and SCOUT mode)
This routine saves the current reference data to the file “NanoCalc\data\ref_files\name.ref” and/or to
“NanoCalc\data\ref_files\name_pixel.ref”. If the screen was switched to pixel resolution both of these files are
saved.
if the dark button was active also 1-2 dark files are saved
This function is easily accessible through function key F8.
7.1.6 Load reference and dark
(internal mode and SCOUT mode)
This routine loads a reference from the directory “NanoCalc\data\ref_files”. If you choose to load a pixel reference,
both refernces will be loaded (eventually also dark files)
Which of these two files is displayed depends on the pixel or nanometers resolution.
This function is easily accessible through function key F9.
7.1.7 Load last measurement
(internal mode only)
This function is easily accessible through function key F11.
7.1.8 Load last saved file
(internal mode only)
This function is easily accessible through function key F12.
7.1.9 Import raw data
(internal mode and SCOUT mode)
You are asked for an import- directory. The imported values are displayed in blue (=similar to measured values).
The scale of the screen is not adjusted.
7.1.10 Export raw data
(internal mode and SCOUT mode)
If a curve was produced by simulation or measurement it may be exported as ASCC-file (“raw data”). This file has a
very simple structure: (lambda, value)
350,0.455
351,0.467
352,0.479
353,0.490
354,0.501
355,0.512
356,0.522
You are asked for a directory to save this file. Please use the default directory \RawData_Files\Reflectometry
7.1.11 Print report
This routine allows you to enter some user data (names of operator, of sample and so on), shows a preview and
prints on the Windows standard printer. Changing the printer is possible only within Windows itself.
Entering of user data: you may also change the names of the labels (empty labels: this line is not shown on the
final print). In the preview window you may zoom in and out. After pressing the print button you have the chance to
change some printer options.

If you want to get a printout of the complete screen or parts of it:
It is recommended to use a hardcopy program to print the different parts of the software with enough options to
change colors, resolution etc.
We recommend a shareware ”HC.EXE” (http://www.sw4you.de and on the CD-ROM in : tools\general), which will
include a small button in every (!) window of your system near to the close button.

For online-users: we recommend to buy the OPTION NanoCalc-Online for printouts of Multipoint Measurement,
Result-Windows with Statistic Data’s and Excel-Connection.

7.1.12 Show Scout report
(SCOUT mode only)
See chapter “Special features for SCOUT mode”
7.1.13 Exit
This routine exits NanoCalc and SCOUT and closes all windows. All important data have been written to the
Thinfilm.ini -file before and will be reloaded in the next run.
Important warning:
Do NOT close SCOUT separately !!! This would break the OLE-connection between SCOUT and NanoCalc. The
only way to restore this connection is to exit NanoCalc and restart the software !

7.1.14 Function keys
If you click on the buttons F2 - F7 different spectra or recipes together with their layer data are loaded (for
demonstration purposes or to get a faster access to recipes than by loading them via “files\load recipe”). You
should be able to analyze these demonstration spectra by a simple click on the Analyze button.
How to add your own recipes to function keys:
Step 1: carefully adjust all parameters in EditStructure and all plot and extraction limits. Do not forget roughness
parameters if necessary.
Step 2: save this setup with menu “files\save_as_recipe” as usual BUT save it to menu “data\internal_files” instead
of saving it to menu “recipes\layer_recipes” AND save your setup with the name of the function key, e.g. save
F4.nan or F6.nan (NOT F6.lrc !!). Recipes stored in function keys have the file extension .nan and not the
extension .lrc (as usual layer recipes). Check for correct names with Windows Explorer !

7.2

Main menu “Screen”

7.2.1 Spectrometer data

The 4 spectrometer coefficients are
displayed for information purposes.
They are automatically set by the
Thinfilm.ini file which is specific for
each single system.
Changing these values will screw up
the system and is therefore password
protected and only accessible for
technical service.
For calibration purposes you may
change these values (with a password
and only within several percent
deviation from your original values).

physical meaning:
These 4 numbers are the coefficients in a formula that shows the dependence between wavelength (in
nanometers) and pixelnumber of your spectrometer according to the following formula:

λ = I + C1 ⋅ P + C2 ⋅ P 2 + C3 ⋅ P 3
with:
I
C1
C2
C3
P

= intercept
= first coefficient
= second coefficient
= third coefficient
= pixelnumber

Hint:
Ask your hardware supplier if you have the impression that it might be necessary to recalibrate the
spectrometer (a red HeNe-laser should show 632.8 nm)

7.2.1.1 Integration time
Whenever you change this value, it is written to disk (in file “Thinfilm.ini”) and will be used as a startup value.
How to change integration time:
1. method:
To check integration time rapidly, use continuous mode button. You may change the value of integration time by
+1 msec or +10 msec or -1 msec or -10 msec within a mouse click. Try to achieve a maximum signal of 20 - 90 %
of total range. This value will depend very much on the reflectivities of your reference materials, your substrate
material and your layer material.

An example:
If you use silicon as reference and substrate material and you want to measured silicon oxide thickness you should
try to get reference signals of 80 - 90 %. An oxidized silicon wafer will NOT produce signal saturation and your
signal-to-noise-ration will be as high as possible.
If you use a metalized surface as a reference (and you want to measure oxidized silicon wafers later on) you need
to start with LOW reference intensities (like 20 %) to avoid saturation in your measured signal. Of course you get a
lower signal-to-noise-ratio in this case.
After switching off continuous mode button, you do not have to press the reference button again as the last signal
has been saved.
2. method:
use the menu "options/spectrometer data" and check by pressing the reference button once.
Tips:
Try to use short values of integration time while keeping the lamp intensity as high as possible (to get short
measuring times). This is especially important in mapping mode.
If your integration times are too short, you will have problems with signal-to-noise. If your integration times are too
long, you will get saturation of the signal and this may cause errors in data extraction.
You may check the value of integration time at any time without entering the menu OPTIONS: Put your mouse
cursor over the button REFERENCE or MEASURE and wait for about 2 seconds: a small window will pop up to
inform you about integration time, samples to average and boxcar width.
These values correspond to the channel A spectrometer if you use a double spectrometer.
7.2.1.2 Boxcar width
physical meaning:
The Ocean Optics / Mikropack spectrometer is able to average over some pixels to increase signal/noise-ratio.
A boxcar width of 1 pixel means no averaging at all. This has to be used if you want to measure very thick layers
(like 50 micrometers of resist)

A boxcar width of 5 pixels means an averaging over 2 pixels on the left side and 2 pixels on the right side (= 5
pixels altogether). This averaging routine is shifted from the left side of the simulated spectrum to the right side with
a step size of 1 pixel only. Values of 5-9 are recommended if you want to measure films in the range of 1 micrometer or less as you get a better signal-to-noise ratio. Use a value of 1 for very thick layers.
hint:
You may check boxcar width at any instance without entering the menu OPTIONS: Put your mouse cursor over the
button REFERENCE or MEASURE and wait for about 2 seconds: a small window will pop up to inform you about
integration time, samples to average and boxcar width.
These values correspond to the channel A spectrometer if you use a double spectrometer.
7.2.1.3 Samples to average
Whenever you change this value, it is written to disk (in file “Thinfilm.ini”) and will be used as a startup value.
physical meaning:
The Ocean Optics / Mikropack spectrometer is able to average over some runs to increase signal/noise-ratio.
Tips:
Try to use small values for Samples To Average while keeping the lamp intensity as high as possible (to get short
measuring times). This is especially important in mapping mode.
You may check Samples To Average at any instance without entering the menu OPTIONS: Put your mouse cursor
over the button REFERENCE or MEASURE and wait for about 2 seconds: a small window will pop up to inform you
about integration time, samples to average and boxcar width.
7.2.1.4 Internal correct for dark
If you choose this option, dark current is corrected automatically (see Button measure).
The Ocean Optics / Mikropack Spectrometer is able to measure the dynamic dark current internally within a couple
of pixels that are NOT irradiated by external light, and is correcting dynamically.
7.2.1.5 Dark button
If you choose this option, dark current is corrected mathematically. This is necessary if you can’t protect your
system against ambient light or stray light.
7.2.1.6 Maximum intensity
This value describes the maximum intensity in the spectrum of your (halogen ?) lamp.
This value helps NanoCalc to achieve an automatic
adjustment of the reference spectrum within the limits of the
screen (=without saturation)
If you use a double spectrometer there are TWO such wavelengths corresponding to the different sensitivities of the two
spectrometers and your light source.
7.2.1.7 Crossover wavelength
If you use a double spectrometer with different sensitivity
regions (e.g. 200-600 nm for the CHANNEL A spectrometer
and 500-1100 nm for the CHANNEL B spectrometer),
NanoCalc joins the 2 spectra to get a single spectrum (200 1100 nm). The wavelength where the two overlapping spectra
are joined is called crossover wavelength. (any value in your
overlap range of the two channels is possible, 550 nm would
be a good choice in this case).

7.2.2 Hardware settings
Please find these settings in Appendix A at the end of this handbook.
(This window may look slightly different, depending on the latest version of the driver)
7.2.3 Limits
The spectrometer limits in magenta colors are showing the maximum range of your specific system.

7.2.3.1 Plot limits
The plot limits are the left and right side of the plot on your screen and coincide with limits of measurement.
The adjustable values of the plot limits depend on the grating in your Ocean Optics / Mikropack Spectrometer and
are noted in the calibration sheet of your system.
The plot limits may be changed within NanoCalc in steps of 1 nm.
1. normal mode to change the limits:
open the menu “spectrometer data \ limits” and enter numbers or use the up-down arrows
2. fast and rough method to change the limits:
If you click in the field near the LOWER numbers you may change the plot limits without entering the menu
option/limits:
If you click in the LEFT half with your LEFT mouse button you will decrease the lower plot limit.
If you click in the LEFT half with your RIGHT mouse button you will increase the lower plot limit.
If you click in the RIGHT half with your LEFT mouse button you will decrease the lower plot limit.
If you click in the RIGHT half with your RIGHT mouse button you will increase the lower plot limit.
The same feature applies to plot limits and reflectivity limits.
3. fast and precise method to change the limits:
If you move your mouse very near to the lower part of the plot window (but still in the grey part) you will see a
little vertical arrow and the value of the
wavelength is displayed. If you now click
with the left mouse button, you are able
to change the lower plot limit (right
mouse button=upper plot limit). The
same applies to the other 2 grey zones
= extraction and reflectivity limits (see
picture)

4. Zoom
You may zoom by dragging the mouse from one point to another within the plot area.
If you click with the right mouse button a small popup window will appear with the chance to undo this
zoom.
You can also change the plot limits back to the full range (according to your spectrometer limitations).
You can also set the current plot limits as a standard or return to a previously set standard.
ATTENTION:
to be consistent with data handling, ALL materials files contain n and k data between 150 nm and 1100 nm.
Usually only parts of these data are measured data (e.g. between 206 nm and 840 nm or between 300 nm and
1100 nm). If you simulate, the valid part of the curve is shown in black while the rest is shown in grey (and you
get a message).
Extraction limits are restricted to the range of valid n and k data.
7.2.3.2 Extraction limits
These limits cannot be larger than the plot limits. Try to use a large extraction range as long as your signal is
“good”.
1. normal mode to change the limits:
open the menu “spectrometer data \ limits” and enter numbers or use the up-down arrows
2. fast and rough method to change the limits:
If you click in the field near the UPPER numbers you may change the extraction limits without entering the
menu “spectrometer data \ limits”.
If you click in the LEFT half with your LEFT mouse button you will decrease the lower extraction limit.
If you click in the LEFT half with your RIGHT mouse button you will decrease the lower extraction limit.
If you click in the RIGHT half with your LEFT mouse button you will decrease the lower extraction limit.
If you click in the RIGHT half with your RIGHT mouse button you will decrease the lower extraction limit.
The same feature applies to plot limits and reflectivity limits.
3. Fast and precise method to change the limits:
If you move your mouse very near to the upper part of the plot window (but still in the grey part) you will see a
little vertical arrow and the value of the wavelength is displayed. If you now click with the left mouse button, you
are able to change the lower extraction limit (right mouse button=upper extraction limit)
ATTENTION:
to be consistent with data handling, ALL materials files contain n and k data between 150 nm and 1100 nm. Usually
only parts of these data are measured data (e.g. between 206 nm and 840 nm or between 300 nm and 1100 nm).
If you simulate, the valid part of the curve is shown in black while the rest is shown in grey (and you get a
message).
Extraction limits are restricted to the range of valid n and k data.
7.2.3.3 Reflectivity limits
Reflectance (and transmittance) are defined between 0 and 1.
To zoom in the plot and to see some more details you may change the reflectivity limits. In most cases you will not
need this option.
1. normal mode to change the limits:
open the menu “spectrometer data \ limits” and enter numbers or use the up-down arrows
2. fast and rough method to change the limits:
If you click in the field near the LEFT numbers you may change the reflectivity limits without entering the menu
option \ limits:
If you click in the LOWER half with your LEFT mouse button you will decrease the lower reflectivity limit.
If you click in the LOWER half with your RIGHT mouse button you will decrease the lower reflectivity limit.
If you click in the UPPER half with your LEFT mouse button you will decrease the lower reflectivity limit.
If you click in the UPPER half with your RIGHT mouse button you will decrease the lower reflectivity limit.
The same feature applies to plot limits and reflectivity limits.

3. Fast and precise method to change the limits:
If you move your mouse very near to the left part of the plot window (but still in the grey area) you will see a little
horizontal arrow and the value of the wavelength is displayed. If you now click with the left mouse button, you
are able to change the lower reflectivity limit (right mouse button=upper reflectivity limit)
7.2.4 Dispersion
This form shows the refraction index n(lambda) and the absorption index k(lambda) (within the plot limits) for
different layers.
This form is just a tool to control your data, nothing can be changed in this form.
• You may use 2 cursors (symbol #4). At start time of the cursors both cursors are painted on top of
oneanother, move them with the mouse. The cursor values are shown in blue (= k(λ)) and red (=n(λ))
• You may also zoom in and out and in an area (symbols #1 - #3)
You may also save these dispersion values
as a dat-file, but be very careful about the
target directory !!

ATTENTION:
to be consistent with data handling, ALL materials files contain n and k data between 150 nm and 1100 nm. Usually
only parts of these data are measured data (e.g. between 206 nm and 840 nm or between 300 nm and 1100 nm).
If you simulate, the valid part of the curve is shown in black while the rest is shown in grey (and you get a
message).
Extraction limits are restricted to the range of valid n and k data.
7.2.5 Pixel resolution
This option is only useful for very thick films. If you use the option pixel resolution the software will acquire and
display all data in spectrometer pixels and no more in nanometer resolution.

With pixel resolution data are displayed at exactly those wavelengths where there is a pixel in your spectrometer. If
you own a high resolution spectrometer there is a spectral resolution down to 0.2 nanometer or less. For more
precise information consult your hardware supplier.
The same option is also accessible via menu “data extraction \ sampling”.

7.2.6 Show intensity
If you use this option you will observe a value of ”total intensity” in one of the panels in the status bar. This value is
just the sum of all intensities between the extraction limit with a spacing of 5 nm.
Example:
I(total)=234.45
So this figure gives a very rough information about the area under the measured or simulated curve. This might be
used to maximize some intensity.

7.3

Main menu “Data Editor”

7.3.1 Modify old .dat-files
Modifying existing dat-files:
1. At first you will see two combo-boxes to choose a catalogue and a material.
2. Then click “open file”. Some new features become visible: either a list with cauchy coefficients or a table with
dispersion data

If you like to change these old data (=adding of constants or multiplying with a factor), just click on ADD or
MULTIPLY in the appropriate row. It is possible to change each cauchy coefficient separately, but not a single
value in a table. If you want to change table values, you have to do this with an external text editor.
3. After adding or multiplying click on “save dat-file” or click “reset modifications”
Then the software will automatically switch to the page “save dat-file”.
7.3.2 Save DAT-files
Be careful where you save this “new” material !

7.3.3 Create Cauchy .dat-file
Creating new Cauchy dat-files:
It is only possible to create new DATfiles with cauchy coefficients, not as a
table of index data. To create a table you
have to use an external text editor.
1. At first you will see three wavelengths
and 6 Cauchy coefficients n0, n1,
n2, k0, k1and k2
2. change these values according to
your information. You have to add
ALL three values.
3. click on create Cauchy coefficients
4. then click on “save DAT-file” or click
“reset modifications”
Then the software will automatically
switch to the page “save DAT-file”.

7.3.4 Create EMA dat-file
Creating new EMA dat-files:
An EMA-file is a mixture of 2 different dispersion
values. There are different mixture algorithms in the
literature. In NanoCalc only the simple Looyenga
method (=a linear mixture) and the Bruggeman
method are implemented.
The structure of an EMA dat-file is rather similar to 2
added normal dat-files. Here you see an example for
Poly-silicon as a mixture of crystalline silicon and
amorphous silicon (it is also possible to construct such
a file manually with every texteditor)
Si_cr.100(Aspnes_mod.)
633,3.8714,0.0158
150,1100
EMA_Mixture=Si_(100),a_Si,Bruggeman,50.0_Perc
ent
Table
150,0.5100,2.1500
151,0.5000,2.1500
152,0.5000,2.1500
….
…
….
1098,3.5559,0.0014
1099,3.5557,0.0014
1100,3.5554,0.0014
a_Si(SOPRA_amorphousSilicon)
633,4.517,0.2312

240,840
EMA_Mixture=Si_(100),a_Si,Bruggeman,50.0_Percent
Table
150,1.6844,3.3312
151,1.6844,3.3312
152,1.6844,3.3312
153,1.6844,3.3312
154,1.6844,3.3312
Be careful where you save this “new” material !

7.4

Main menu “Externals”

7.4.1 Mapping

You need a mapping-xy-stage and a special mapping addon software forNanoCalc to measure in mapping mode. In
this mode it is possible to measure and display your film
parameters as a function of x and y.

main menus of mapping mode
1. menu “Recipes”
•
Save as map recipe
•
Load map recipe
Here you may save or load ALL the settings you have done in all the various possibilities. It is recommended to
save your usual settings in a recipe. It is possible to use a special recipe name like “myownRecipe”. Recipes for
mapping will receive the extension “.mrc” and will be saved in menu “Recipes\Map_Recipes”
2. menu “Teach in”
This will be explained later in a following section
3. menu “help”
this is the usual access to help functions
main buttons (lower right side)
reference
you can take a reference with a blank reference wafer (right mouse button=time adjuastments possible)
measure
you can take a real (test) measurement with your sample. Thus you can control all settings before you start the
mapping
clear
clears the screen
analyze
you can analyze the layer thickness your sample. Thus you can control all settings before you start the mapping
initialize stage:
After starting mapping mode you have to initialize the mapping stage first.
Until the mapping stage is initialized the function start mapping is deactivated.
start mapping
this will start the mapping sequence
cancel
leave mapping mode

scan mode:
a. shape of the wafers:
1. You may use square or round wafers.
2. To use your own design as a background you need to edit the file
OwnDesign.bmp (this is possible with lots of drawing programs or ask
your software supplier for help).
b. wafer size
Wafer size may be changed between 50 mm and 300 mm (= 12'').
A grid is shown with a constant grid distance (e.g. 10 mm).
c. scan region
It is possible to change:
- the x and y coordinates of the origin in steps of 0.1 mm
- the number of rows and the number of columns of the scanning grid
(from 1 to 100)
- the size of the x and y steps (in multiples of 0.1 mm)
The wafer plot shows what you are doing.
d. rotation
here you can rotate the scan region

e. mapping positions
measuring position:
If you press one of the position buttons (Home, Scan, Center, Reference), the mapping stage will immediately go to
this point and a red circle is displayed on the screen. Additionally the coordinates of this point are displayed. If
option "measure on each click" in Tab2 is activated, a measurement will be performed.
You may reach any point by clicking with the LEFT mouse button or by entering the coordinates and pressing the
xy-button.
You may move up and down or left and right by pressing the appropriate arrow buttons. If you press the arrow
buttons with the left mouse button the cursor will move in increments of xSteps. If you press the arrow buttons with
the right mouse button the cursor will move in smaller increments of xSteps/10
f. position buttons:
1. home position
Usually this is in the right lower corner of the xy-stage. The hardware of the stage will define this point at the
beginning of the mapping experiment (and it can be changed manually in the ini-File in section [mapping],
HomepositionX/Y=.... The numbers mean the percentage compared to wafersize (0.05 =5% of wafersize)
2. scan position
this is the origin of the scanning coordinate system
3. center position
this is the center of the (round) wafer stage
4. reference position
this is the position where the reference measurement has to be done.
this point (=the black circle) may be chosen by clicking with the RIGHT mouse button or by changing the
numbers
The wafer plot shows what you are doing.
wafer:
The shape of the substrate may be:
a. circular (between 50 and 300mm)
b. square (between 50 and 300 mm)
c. your own design (change file "OwnDesign.bmp" with any drawing
software)
example:

Wafer size may be changed between 50 mm (= 2'') and 300 mm (= 12””).

Xy-stage:
Ocean Optics / Mikropack can deliver xy-stages up to 300mm (= 12”)
a. xy reference position
with a right mouse button click you may change the position for measuring
the reference. You may also enter numbers in this field. There is a
possibility to build a wafer-chuck with a special area for a piece of
reference-material even outside the defined wafer area. You may enter
negative coordinates, but be VERY careful not to damage the stage. When
the reference is taken, the stage drives to the set reference position and
takes the reference measurement.
b. xy center position:
you may define a round (!) area which means the area of measurements.
This area is not necessarily the same as the reserved area for the chuck
c. wait interval:
after each measurement the scanning may be interrupted for a certain
interval of time
d. scanmode:
If you activate this option each single measurement is waiting for a trigger
signal (a keystroke with ENTER key or an external TTL trigger signal which
is applied to the spectrometer. Ask your hardware supplier…)
data extract:
a. visibility during map
You have the choice between 1D-plots for line scans, 2D-plots and/or 3Dplots. The 2D-plot and the 3D-plot contain the same data.
A 1D-plot is possible only if you measure along ONE row or column (and
not a two-dimensional field.)
Only one variable is allowed to be seen during map.
b. analyzing options
analyze thickness on each left mouse click. This is a very useful feature
to make a quick check on thickness distributions on your wafer (do not
forget to activate option "plot value ").
fitness limit: if your results are completely wrong for some reasons, all
measured values with a fitness greater than this fitness limit here will be
set to zero. This feature is useful, if dust causes a measurement error
during mapping. Without this feature you might get enormous spikes.
d. number of runs
You have the choice between a single run (for real measurement
purposes) and a nearly infinite number of runs (=30000) for
demonstration purposes.

data export:
You may choose the following options during a mapping experiment:
1. plot the simulated curve
2. plot thickness value
It is more informative to see the analyzed curve and the calculated value of
thickness during the simulation, but this is time-consuming. If the mapping
takes a longer time it is recommended to switch off these 2 features.
You may choose the following options after a mapping experiment:
1. write data as map-file
2. insert comments in map or Excel-files
3. show results window
1. Write data as map-file
All thickness and fitness data together with some coordinate information
are written to a ASCII-file in directory “NanoCalc\data\map_files”.
examples can be found in the directory “NanoCalc\data\map_Files”
2. insert comments in map or Excel-files
you may enter text like “sample #1, “Paul McCartney” or “myfirsttest”.
This text will be a header for your map-files and also for all exported
Excel_files
3. show result window
If you accept this option a results window with possibility for Excel export
will open after the mapping process.
Scan data:
This feature is used in microscope arrangement (e.g. for measuring structured wafers) if you want to hit the xy-positions with higher accuracy.
Usually the wafer or sample will be positioned on the chuck with some
mechanical adjustments (like pins on 2 sides of the wafer and adjustment to
the wafer flat). This will result in a medium accuracy, but not comparable to
fine positioning like in semiconductor photolithography.
How to get a higher accuracy:
1. click on “marker 1”:
The stage will move to this position. If you now look through the
microscope you will see a slight deviation between the illuminated spot
and the real marker on your wafer.
2. Correct this deviation by moving the stage (use the keyboard arrows:
clicking or pressing once = 10 micrometer, SHIFT + clicking or pressing
once = 1 millimeter). The red circle on the screen will move slightly off the
marker.
3. Repeat step 1 and 2 for marker 2
4. Now the software knows both deviations and is able to calculate what to
do: shifting the origin and rotating the scan pattern a little bit. Press the
button: “accept teach-in”
5. Control the values of rotation angle and xy-origin
6. Start mapping as usual

Teach in:
Teach in is an interactive tool to write new map-recipes without using text editors to edit the map recipe file.

Now the method with teach-in-mode:
1. open the mapping window (main menu “map data”) and then the menu “TeachIn”
2. you will see this window:
3. to set the first marker position, click on “marker 1”, then move the measuring position
with the arrow keys on the keyboard
or by clicking somewhere in the wafer area
or by typing values in the text box
4. to set the second marker position, click on “marker 2”, then move the measuring position as before
5. to set the first data point, click on “data”, then move the measuring position as before
6. to set the next data point, click on the up down counter (now it should show the value 2 instead of 1) and then
move to the measuring position as before
7.save the new recipe (like test.mrc) with the extension .mrc

Result List
7.4.2
As soon as the mapping is finished you will see a result list:

On the first page you see the measured thickness values for each layer. In the picture above there was just one
layer and 3 x 3 = 9 measured data points. In the last page you can see the associated fitness values for each
coordinate. In the text windows below the data window you see mean values, maximum and minimum values and
standard deviation σ, the 3σ-value and the number of failures (according to the measured fitness and your fitness
limit).
If you did not choose a regular scan pattern, you will see a one-dimensional list.
If you click on the buttons with the numbers in a row or a column you will highlight a certain number of data points
(in the picture above column 3 was highlighted). Now you can control these selected values in a one- or twodimensional plot by pressing the appropriate button in the last row. You may also choose a smaller amount of data
by dragging with the mouse (e.g. 2 x 2 = 4 points).
If you press “write data to EXCEL-file” EXCEL will be opened (if installed on your PC) and the data will be
transferred to a spreadsheet.
With “close all windows” you will return to NanoCalc main window and all mapping windows will be closed.
If you enter a value for “fitness limit” and press ENTER, the screen will be updated and all cells with a higher fitness
than your limit will beplotted in red (cells in grey show that this point was outside the wafer).

Analyze mapped data
7.4.3
You may also analyze your mapped data at a later time, if you saved them to a .map file.

7.4.4
Structure of .map-file
The first 2 lines are comments, the file format is very strict.
test4
user4
***
xy-ScanMode
1 Layer(s)
1 Layer(s)ToExtract
2 Row(s)
2 Col(s)
4 total points
5 xStep
5 yStep
***
IndexNo, row, col, x, y, fitness, d1
1, 1, 1, 30.000, 30.000, 0.048, 132.880717
2, 1, 2, 35.000, 30.000, 0.048, 132.806642
3, 2, 1, 35.000, 35.000, 0.048, 132.918102
4, 2, 2, 30.000, 35.000, 0.048, 132.858514

7.4.5

Online/multipoint measurements

load online/multipoint recipe:
The online setup window contains lots of input data, so usually
you will want to use an online recipe to do that job for you.
You will be asked for a file name (usually in directory
“NanoCalc\recipe\online_recipes”). After loading this file nothing
happens except new parameters in setup, like different y-axis or
other trigger parameters.
save as online/multipoint recipe:
The online setup window contains lots of input data, so usually
you will want to use an online recipe to do that job for you.
If you changed some setup parameters you can save them as a
new online recipe.
You will be asked for a new file name (usually in directory “NanoCalc\recipe\online_recipes”).
online/multipoint setup:
Depending on the switch “show setup first” in menu “online\setup” the setup window for online measurements is
shown at first or not. If you want to rename your files at the beginning of each measurement cycle it is recommended to open the setup window first.
The setup window contains lots of input data, so usually you will want to use an online recipe to do that job for you.
save mode:
In this first part of online setup you can choose:
a. option “save mode“
1. no save:
all data are lost and only visible on screen
2. continous save to RAM
at the end of the run you may observe and analyze
your data in the results window
3. continous save to disk
according to option “write_to_file_interval” all data are
written to file in smaller portions with filenames that
are determined in option “filenames”
b. option “filenames“
1. choose a name like “series 1“ or “test4” or alike
2. choose one or more options “add…..”
example: a filename might look like: test156.onl
c. option “trigger interval”
You might want to save the value (not the file !) every
trigger, but for some reasons you might want to save
only every third trigger.
d. option “write_to_file_interval”
You might want to save the file (not the value !) every
trigger, but for some reasons you might want to save
only every third trigger.
e. comment
you may add an ASCII-string, which will be addes to
every online file

trigger mode:
In this second part of online setup you can choose:
a. option “trigger modes“
you can trigger continuously by adjusting the
appropriate software parameters like trigger interval.
You can trigger manually with a keystroke
you can trigger externally with a TT-signal to your
spectrometer. Please consult your hardware
supplier…
b. option “trigger interval”
Here you choose the time interval between two
software triggers. Pay attention on the correct unit.
You may test the trigger interval empirically with “test
recommended tme”. Add some safety margins.
c. option “number of runs”
You might want to run a certain number of data points
only or (nearly) infinitely.
Attention: “infinite” means about 999999 data points.
Plots:
In this third part of online setup you can choose plot
parameters for up to 4 charts.
Each chart displays a single parameter

Result list for online/multipoint mode

On the first tab you see the fitness for each measurement, on the second tab you see the measured thickness
values (for a one-layer system). In the picture above there 25 measured data points.
In the text windows below the data window you see mean values, maximum and minimum values and standard
deviation σ, the 3σ-value and the number of failures (according to the measured fitness and your fitness limit).
If you press “write data to EXCEL-file” the data are transferred to an .xls-file (Excel need not be installed on this
PC).
If you press this Excel-button together with the SHIFT-key the text will switch to “write data as csv-file” and such a
csv-file will be generated instead of an .xls-file.
With “close all windows” you will return to NanoCalc main window and all online windows will be closed.

Analyze online/multipoint data
7.4.6
You may also analyze your online data at a later time, if you saved them to a .onl file.
7.4.7
Structure of .onl-file
The first line is a comment, the file format is very strict.
test1
***
55 total points
***
triggercounter, time, fitness, d1
1, 10:35:19, 0.010, 128.3
2, 10:35:19, 0.010, 128.1
3, 10:35:20, 0.014, 128.1
4, 10:35:20, 0.009, 128.3
5, 10:35:21, 0.008, 128.2

7.4.8
RS232
If you own an xy-stage or any other arrangement with Faulhaber motors you may use this menu to drive the
motors and to test their behaviour. You find a list of commands on the left side, for more information please
consult the motor manuals.

Vision system
7.4.9
If you own a vision system with an IDS uEye-camera you may turn on the camera with this menu

7.5

Main menu “Options”

7.5.1 Change buttons

In this window you can make visible
or invisible:
- the startup image:
If you want to start NanoCalc with a
nice
picture: activate this option !
- the picture will disappear after
some
seconds or you might “click it
away”
- a measure and analyze-button:
to combine the functions to the
measure and
the analyze button
- factor for measuring integration time:
Sometimes the signal intensities from the reference sample and the device under test are extremely different: e.g.
the device might have an antireflective coating and does not show a good reflection signal. To avoid signal-tonoise problems, it possible to switch on the option “factor for measuring integration time” in menu “data
extraction”. If you now go to menu “spectrometer data” you will find a new item to change the integration time for
the measurement task independently of the reference task.
Example:
Integration time for reference = 100 msec
Integration time for measurement = 1000 msec
Thus there is a factor of 10 between these two experiment. Internally the device signal will first be divided by 10
(maintaining a good S/N-ratio) and then the calculation will be done as usual.
- show dark button:
an extra dark button appears if it is necessary to measure any dark current (e.g. in a microscope setup)
- show recipe button:
an extra “load recipe” button appears to make it easier to load recipes
- a mapping button:
an extra “mapping” button appears to make it easier to use mapping
- a quality slider is allowed
With this feature it is possible to set the speed (or the precision of the fit) for each individual measurement

7.5.2

Roughness

General:
It is quite difficult to measure interference if the substrate or the
layers are rough, as the interference patterns get lost.
Roughness is quite common for thick layers like 20 micrometers
of photoresist, as the drying process is very critical and the
shrinking of the resist does not lead to perfect surfaces.
Roughness is also quite common for technical surfaces like
aluminum or brass or steel that are to be covered with protection
layers (like DLC = diamond like carbon layers).
Methods:
In NanoCalc an empirical methods is implemented to deal with
roughness:
1. no roughness
No roughness is included in the calculation.
2. constant roughness
You will see some textboxes in the setup area which show “Rfactors” for each interface. This value means a percentage of
light that is regarded as lost at this interface. So there is no real
physical roughness model. Such a physical model cannot be
given as the typical size of the roughness is absolutely
unknown. This means that even the scattering mechanism
(Mie scattering, Rayleigh scattering etc) is unknown. There are
some formulae in the literature but in our case these are not
better than the above mentioned method of light loss via some empirical R-Factors.
An R-factor of R=0 means a perfect surface = no roughness
An R-factor of R=50 means a loss of 50% light at this interface.
There is no wavelength dependency of these empirical factors.
In the current version there is no wavelength dependency of these empirical factors. Version 3.0 (available in
4/2005?) will remove this restriction.
constant roughness
You may input roughness values in the roughness
textboxes or use the slider in the roughness window.
Method:
At each interface a certain amount of light is
regarded as lost. This percentage has to be input via
roughness textboxes in the setup area. These Rfactors are not dependent on wavelength.
This algorithm does NOT manipulate measured
data, but the measured amplitude might still differ
considerably from the simulated amplitudes. This
means that the fit procedure might still have
problems to find a good solution.
Try menu “Data manipulation” instead.

7.5.3 Data manipulation
Please be aware of the fact that all actions within this menu are real manipulations of your measured data ! You
change data to get better results, this maybe risky…
1. apply formula
It is possible to apply many reasonable
formulae to the spectrum.
Example:
Spectrum=Spectrum*0.9
(all values ar multiplied with a constant factor
0.9)
You may also try:
Spectrum=Spectrum*(1+lambda/800)
and many others …
2. subtract mean value
the mean level of the measured signal is
adjusted to the level of the simulated signal,
but NOT the frequency or the amplitude or the
slope of the signal. This option is quite useful if
for some reason there is a slight constant
offset between signal and simulation.
4. subtract mean value and adjust slope
The level and the amplitude and the slope of the measured signal are adjusted to the level of the simulated
signal, but NOT the frequency of signal modulation.
Only the frequency of the wiggles remain as information. Think about using the FFT method instead.

7.5.4

Fit parameters

In the file “Thinfilm.ini” you will find 3 entries in section [fit]:
Failure_RedLevel=1
Failure_YellowLevel=0.1

RYG_LevelsAreDisplayed=False
If you change the variable RYG_LevelsAreDisplayed from “False” to “True” (in main menu “Fitparameters”), the
usual rainbow pattern on the screen will disappear and a simple color will show up.
• If the fitness is below Failure_YellowLevel=0.1 you will see a GREEN color.
• If the fitness is between Failure_YellowLevel=0.1 and Failure_RedLevel=1 you will see a YELLOW color.
• If the fitness is above Failure_RedLevel=0.1 you will see a RED color
Attention:
If you measure very thick resists (with a good correlation between maxima positions, but bad correlation between
signal heights) you may end up with high values of fitness, but nevertheless the thickness results may be o.k.

Some setups
7.5.5
Overflow during a measurement may arise if you use a relatively high level for the reference measurements and
then a sample that is reflecting much better than your reference.
If you suspect that this might be possible: turn on “check overflow” (otherwise not, it is faster!)
Overflow=0:
There is no check for overflow
Overflow=n:
Every n-th pixel is checked for overflow (then: warning)

Change colors: Here you may change the colors of the layers. First click on the layer area on the left side. Then
move the mouse over the large coloured area and click if the colour pleases you. Then press OK

7.5.6
Measurement mode
NanoCalc can be used in reflection or transmission setup.

7.5.7
Operator mode
NanoCalc can be used in administrator or operator mode.

7.5.7.1

Internal mode

For internal purposes only (password necessary).
7.5.7.2 User mode
In user mode certain restrictions apply: e.g. the user is not allowed to edit the structure or to change the
parameters of the spectrometer.
The default password to come back to administrator mode is: ”admin”. This password can be changed arbitrarily,
there are no severe restrictions concerning passwords. Please use letters and numbers only.
7.5.7.3 Administrator mode
In administrator mode no restrictions apply.
This mode is reserved for the administrator of the system.
The default password to come back to administrator mode is: ”admin”. This password can be changed arbitrarily,
there are no severe restrictions concerning passwords. Please use letters and numbers only.
The administrator may define the options that will work for a standard user. To get this Rights of User - window just
click on ”administrator mode”.
7.5.7.4

Rights of user

The administrator may set the rights for the user for nearly every single feature of the software.

7.5.8

7.6

Change colours

Main menu “Version”

This menu is visible only if you own a “combiversion” = a combined version of NanoCalc and ElliCalc. You may
switch to the other application

7.7

Chart and chartdesigner
If you produced a 1D-plot or
2Dplot or 3Dplot you may
change nearly ALL parameters
of the plot by clicking with the
RIGHT mouse button
Hint:
To change the view position :
keep CTRL button pressed and
move the mouse at the same
time.
For further information see
VCFI5.hlp in the help directory
of your NanoCalc installation.

7.7.1

Plot
1D-plot

2D-plot

3D-plot

During mapping it is possible to produce 1D-plots, 2D-plots and 3D-plots.
These plot types can be changed interactively after the mapping was finished. Click with right mouse button on the
plot to get access to the "chart designer“.

Special features for “SCOUT mode”

8.1

Main menu “File”

8.1.1 Change layer recipe
if you load a (.lrc)-recipe containing a link to a SCOUT .sc2-recipe and measure your sample, SCOUT will analyze in the background and the results will be displayed in the graphical user interface of NanoCalc.
The layer stack and all layer parameters are defined within SCOUT and are extracted by SCOUT. NanoCalc is
only a user interface. There are lots of data in NanoCalc's internal .lrc-recipe, but most of them are not important
in this context: SCOUT is the "master".
With "change layer recipe" you may change some of the layer and fit parameters of SCOUT (but not all). Your
changes are NOT permanently saved to the SCOUT recipe on the harddisk, only to the running SCOUT instance.
If you are convinced that your changes are good enough you may also save them permanently (at the moment
only via Scout itself).
To switch to a completely new recipe you have to load another .lrc-recipe with a different SCOUT .sc2-recipe (do
NOT use SCOUT directly !). With "change layer recipe" it is not possible to change the layer structure, only values
of the recipe.

SCOUT fit parameters: Changing a value

SCOUT fit parameters: Changing a range for parameters

SCOUT fit parameters: Changing an extraction method

8.2

Main menu “Screen”

8.3

Main menu “Options”

8.3.1

Fit parameters

8.3.2

Some setups

8.3.2.1

SCOUT setups

Special features for “internal mode”

This internal mode can only extract thicknesses in layer stacks, so this is much more restricted than “SCOUT
mode”. You do not need the SCOUT software and it may be faster than SCOUT in simple cases.
To reach this mode you have to use a lrc-recipe without an internal link to a SCOUT .sc2-recipe. There are
different possibilities to do do this:
• Press SHIFT+CTRL+F12
• Or: load a special .lrc-recipe, called “no_recipe.lrc”
• Or: edit any .lrc-recipe manually: just remove the name of the .sc2-recipe after
“Scout_FileName_NC=name.sc2” in section [Scout]. Be careful with this manual editing, make a safety copy!
Finaly the line should read: “Scout_FileName_NC=”
After this change, you will see a new button “Edit Structure”, which allows you to edit your own layer stack.

9.1

Edit structure button

You will see this button and this window only if you do not use a SCOUT recipe= if you use NanoCalc’s internal
mode (not yet fully supported). You could get good results, but only for the extraction of thicknesses (not
dispersion)
In this menu “edit layer structure” you have to define your own layer structure

9.1.1 General
The full menu EditStructure is only available if you do not use SCOUT.
If you use SCOUT only the reference material may be changed.
In the menu Edit Structure you may enter:

1. The type of catalogue like:
oxides
nitrides
semiconductors
.....
2. The type of material within one specified catalogue, like „oxides“:
SiO2
CuO
TiO2
......
3. The number of layers ( in the present version: 1 to 10)
4. The thickness of all layers in nanometers. This value is regarded as an EXACT value for simulations and as a
GUESS for analyzing measured spectra. Whether this guess is used (or not) will depend on the measurement
mode.
5. A lower and an upper limit of the thickness. These values are NOT used in simulations. Whether these limits are
used for measuring purposes (or not) will depend on the measurement mode.
6. An option „fixed“:
If you press this option, the lower and upper limits are fixed to the value of the thickness of the layer. Such a
layer is regarded as „well known“.
Restriction to NanoCalc_1: If you have two layers and one of them is fixed (= „well-known“), NanoCalc is able to
determine the thickness of the second layer unambiguously. It is not important whether this layer is the upper or
the lower one. The same applies to three layers: two of them have to be fixed, the third will be calculated.
Of course it does not make sense to use three fixed layers, there is nothing left to analyze.
This restriction will not apply to NanoCalc_10nk. This multilayer version is able to calculate several layers
(Attention: in most cases you need moderate information, otherwise there are several nearly equivalent
solutions to the problem)
7. An option „narrow limits“
If you press this option the lower and higher limits are set to about 80-100 nm below and above the value of the
thickness. This is equivalent to having a FAIRLY GOOD KNOWLEDGE of the thickness.
8. An option „wide limits“
If you press this option the lower and upper limits are set to a wider range. This range depends on the settings
of the menu EditStructureSetup and may be set to:
-- well defined values like: lower limit=200 nm and upper limit=800 nm (with any thickness value between 200
and 800 nm)
-- constant range like lower limit = thickness - 100 nm and upper limit = thickness + 100 nm

Thus the search region is restricted to a rather wide, but more or less "reasonable" range. Of course you may
also set the limits very narrow, even to a search range of zero.
9. An option „user limits“
If you press this option you may set the lower and upper limit to any value between 0 and 300000 nanometers.
These values are equivalent to having absolutely NO KNOWLEDGE of any thickness.
9.1.2 Catalogues
In the menu Edit Structure you find a row “catalogues” for each layer. You may choose the TYPE of material like:
glasses, semiconductors, metals etc. In the next row “materials” you may choose the actual material of your layer.
There are different catalogues for photoresists (for different companies like Clariant, Arch, Shipley, MRT and
others).
You may add a new catalogue manually or use the menu Edit Refraction Index.
9.1.3 Materials
In the menu Edit Structure you find a row “materials” for each layer. You may choose the material itself: Si, GaAs,
Ge etc.
In the previous row “catalogues” you first have to choose the TYPE of material of your layer (like
“semiconductors”). There are different catalogues for photoresists (for different companies like Clariant, Arch,
Shipley, MRT and others).
You may add a new material manually or use the menu Edit Refraction Index.
9.1.4 Thickness
NanoCalc uses values for the thickness between 0 and 300000 nm (=300 micrometers). In the present version only
thicknesses may be fitted (otherwise you need SCOUT)
9.1.5 Estimates
NanoCalc uses a maximum value for the estimates of 300000 nm (=300 micrometers).
In automatic mode it is NOT necessary to add values for the upper and lower estimate.
You should give reasonable values for these limits in fitting mode as this influences the time for calculation
considerably.
9.1.6 Fixed limits
If you fix a layer you force the upper and lower limit to have the same value as the thickness value. This means that
the thickness of a fixed layer is regarded to be “well-known” = exact.
Example: thickness = 500 nm
upper limit = 500 nm
lower limit = 500 nm
NanoCalc_1 is able to analyze even 3 layers if two of them are “well-known” = fixed.
The same applies to 2 layers: one of them has to be fixed and the other may be analyzed. It is of no importance
which layer is to be analyzed.
NanoCalc_10nk can extract 2 or 3 layers simultaneously. Of course this takes some time...

9.1.7 Narrow Limits
If you click “narrow limits”, NanoCalc uses rather
narrow low and high limits range of about 100 nm
above and below your thickness estimate
(depending on the material of the layer)
Example1: thickness = 500 nm
upper limit = 600 nm

lower limit = 400 nm
Example2: thickness = 3500 nm
upper limit = 3600 nm
lower limit = 3400 nm
If you need a larger range of limits you have to choose the options WideLimits or UserLimits (up to 300000 nm).
9.1.8 Wide Limits
To use this option you should consult the menu EditStructure \ Setup first:
You have the choice between relative and absolute wide limits
If you choose “wide limits mode” (e.g. ±1000 nm and a thickness of 4000 nm), NanoCalc will search between 3000
nm and 5000 nm.

9.1.9 User limits
If you click “user limits”, NanoCalc accepts your values for lower and upper limits (up to 300000 nm = 300
micrometers).
9.1.10 Number of layers
NanoCalc_1 is doing all simulations with a maximum of 4 layers (extraction: 1 layer)
NanoCalc_10nk can extract data from up to 10 layers simultanuously.
An example of two layers:

9.2
9.2.1

9.3

Main menu “File”
Pixel resolution

Main menu “Options”

9.3.1

Data manipulations

9.3.2

Roughness

Experimental setups and problems

10.1 General
10.1.1 Experimental setup
microscope setup:
• if you use a microscope you have the advantage of a high spatial resolution (depending on your lens system), but
you should keep in mind:
• the angle of incidence is not well defined and you should repeat your measurement with different lenses to control
your results (usually the results are slightly dependent on the magnification factor)
• you have a good chance to measure lots of stray light from your laboratory. Control your measured lamp spectra !
• If you use a fiber for illumination: turn off the usual microscope lamp
• as your spot size is so small: pay attention on particles which may give wrong results
• if film thickness is high: such samples often are inhomogeneous. Try a different spot to measure
• use reference wafers and device under test of the same height
fiber setup:
if you use a simple fiber setup you should keep in mind:
• the spot size corresponds to the area of your fiber core (e.g. 200 micrometers or less)
• try to avoid stray light
• use a distance of at least 3-30 mm (otherwise the results are sensitive to different heights of your reference wafer
and the device under test)
10.1.2 Reference spectrum
To measure the thickness of any thin film you have to measure a reference spectrum first. This is necessary to get
an information about the incoming amount of light as a function of wavelength.
Insert a blank (silicon?) wafer or your blank substrate in the measuring arrangement and press “reference”.
You should get a typical spectrum of a halogen lamp (see chapter 5.1) (or a warning to increase or decrease the
intensity of the lamp)
If you want to continue with measuring your thin films:
Do not forget to tell NanoCalc which substrate you used in this step (by pressing Edit Structure and adjusting the
correct catalogue)
10.1.3 Maximum intensity
This value describes the maximum intensity in the spectrum of your amp (could be easily checked in Reference
mode). This value helps NanoCalc to achieve an automatic adjustment of the reference spectrum within the limits
of the screen (=without saturation)
If you use a double spectrometer there are TWO wavelengths corresponding to the sensitivities of the two
spectrometers and your light source.
10.1.4 Polarization
In case of oblique incidence polarization plays an important role. In a vertical arrangement (like NanoCalc) the
polarization does not play any role.
Attention: in microscope arrangements this condition of vertical incidence may no longer be fulfilled. You should
test your results with different magnifications.
10.1.5 Angle of incidence
“angle of incidence” is defined as the angle between the direction of incoming light and an axis vertical to the
surface.
In the current version of NanoCalc only vertical incidence is allowed.

10.1.6 Signal to noise ratio
The intensity of your acquired signal depends on:
the adjustment of the lamp (see light source or NanoCalc-2000 manual)
the integration time (see menu options)
the number of averages (see samples to average in menu options)
the diameter of the fiber
the distance between fiber and wafer
Do not extend the extraction limits into regions with a high signal-to-noise-ratio !
10.1.7 Stray light
Especially in a microscope setup there is a risk to catch stray light from your laboratory lamps. Try to avoid this as
much as possible or use the simple fiber setup. External light sources usually changes and will produce errors.
10.1.8 Fiber
You may use different fibers with core diameters between 8 and 800 micrometers.
There are special fibers (Y-fibers, fibers with 6 outer fibers to illuminate and 1 inner fiber to detect the reflected
light, fiber cables for double spectrometers). In most cases it is easily possible to detect more or less light through a
different fiber constellation.
Consult your hardware supplier.
10.1.9 Absorbing media
It is not too easy to measure absorbing media like polycrystalline silicon as their refractive and absorption indices
usually depend strongly on preparation conditions.
Try to find good values of n(λ) and k(λ).
10.1.10 Passwords
There are several passwords within NanoCalc:
As a start for user mode and administrator mode there is a password “admin”. This password can be changed.
To change intercept, first coefficient and second coefficient and third coefficient (to recalibrate your own spectrometer) there is another password corresponding to the serial number of your Ocean Optics / Mikropack
spectrometer. This number is displayed on a separate sheet or on the backside of your spectrometer system. If you
could not find this serial number ask your hardware supplier…
10.1.11 Function buttons
If you click on the button F1, you get access to help functions.
If you click on the buttons F2 - F7 different spectra or recipes together with their layer data are loaded for
demonstration purposes. You should be able to analyze these demonstration spectra by a simple click on the
Analyze button.
The button F8 is not used by the demo version (in full version F8 is used to save the reference spectrum to disk).
F9 is used to load the references spectrum from disk.
If you click on the button F9 the file "reference.nan" is loaded and may be used as a reference spectrum (to avoid a
real measurement with a blank substrate). Of course this is only a very inaccurate method for fast access to
measured spectra.
If you click on the button F11 the last measured file is loaded again (if it was cleared). This file was saved on disk
as "LastMeasured_File.nan" in directory \data\Internal_Data.

If you click on the button F12 the last saved file is loaded again (if it was cleared). this file might be a simulated or a
measured file.

10.2 How to measure very thin films
It depends very much of the type of layers whether it is difficult to measure very thin films or not. As we have seen
in the first section it is necessary to expand the spectral measurement range as wide as it is possible with this
system. See chapter 6.2.3 Frequency Limits.
1st example: 20 nm SiO2 on Si
This is difficult to measure because the intensities and the spectral information of the signals with and without the
SiO2-layer do not differ very much. The problem reduces more or less to an intensity measurement.

20nm SiO2 on Si

This means that you should use a light source with a extremely high stability and measure the reference signal
immediately before measuring the SiO2 sample to avoid any drifts. (You should use a UV/VIS/NIR System with a
large spectral range (and a suitable lamp as well).
2nd example: 5 nm Si on BK7-glass

5nm Si on BK7

BK7

You can see that it is rather easy to measure such a thin film.

10.3 How to measure very thick films
Here you see a (simulated) example of 11µm resist on silicon
If the film thickness increases above 5 - 10 micrometers it gets more and more difficult to get good results because
the numbers of extrema in your spectrum increases. This is in conflict with the spectral resolution of your
spectrometer and the thickness of the fiber.

You get the best results (concerning spectral resolution) if you are using a system with a narrow slit. This means
that you probably do not get enough intensity. To avoid problems with signal-to-noise-ratio try the following:
-

adjust your lamp intensity to maximum
minimize distance fiber – wafer
adjust integration time (menu options)
be careful in your choice of extraction and plot limits
try manual measurement mode instead of automatic mode

Quite often thick resists are inhomogeneous or have a rough surface. This may destroy the signal completely or
reduce the amplitude compared to theory.

10.4 How to measure rough, thick films
If the films or the substrate surfaces are rough it gets more and more difficult to get good results because of
scattering effects. Sometimes it is still possible to measure a signal, but usually the amplitude and offsets are
drastically different from theory. Nevertheless: if the film thickness is big enough, the spectrum has enough wiggles
so that analyzing becomes possible.
In menu “data extraction” you find some options to adjust to roughness problems.

Physical explanations

11.1 Refraction index and absorption indices
The refraction index n of a substance is defined as

n =

c vacuum
c m a te r ia l

with c = speed of light
The absorption index k of a substance
describes the absorption behavior of materials.
Glasses and photoresists have negligible
absorption in the visible range.
n and k are a function of the wavelength lambda:
n = n(λ). This phenomenon is called „dispersion“.
n(λ) and k(λ) are closely interrelated via the
dielectric function ε(λ).

11.2 Cauchy coefficients
These coefficients empirically describe the dispersion functions of n(λ) and k(λ).
In many cases the 6 Cauchy coefficients are sufficient to describe the spectral behavior of resists, glasses etc.
Normally NanoCalc uses „nanometers“ as a unit dimension. If you add your own cauchy parameters in a .DAT-file,
pay attention on the correct dimension !! It is possible to use other dimensions within the software but not in the
.DAT-files.
Structure of a .DAT-file:
SiO2_(therm)
name of the material
# this is my own comment 1 arbritrary comment (beginning with #)
# this is my own comment 2
633,1.4570,0
lambda, n and k at 633 nm
150,900
measured data between these limits
Table
(or CAUCHY)
150,1.5510,0
n and k at 150 nm
151,1.5504,0
n and k at 151 nm
152,1.5491,0
n and k at 152 nm
153,1.5477,0
n and k at 153 nm
154,1.5464,0
n and k at 154 nm
and so on......
The first lines are not used by the software for calculation.

ATTENTION: Do not use any blanks in the name of the file !
The third line (150,900) means that measured data are measured (=available) between these limits
(LowerLimit=150 nm and UpperLimit=900 nm) and all extracted and displayed data (drawn in light Grey instead of
black) between 900-1100 nm have NO meaning !!

11.3 Interference
The arrangement in the picture below shows the case of an oblique incidence (just to explain „angle of incidence“)
in contrast to usual experimental setup of a vertical incidence.
The measurement of reflectivity of thin films is a good example of an interference problem:
incident intensity

reflected intensity

layer

substrate
transmitted (and
absorbed) intensity

The incoming wave splits up in a reflected and a transmitted
wave at each external or internal surface. The amplitudes of
these partial waves depend on:
1.angle of incidence (if this angle is >0, then polarization plays
an important role)
2.refraction index and absorption index of all layers
Now the superposition of ALL waves (with different phase
relations, amplitudes) has to be done. If the layers are thin and
flat you have to add amplitudes and not intensities (see your
physics text book). So you may end up with „destructive and
constructive interference“: a positive amplitude and a negative
amplitude may add up to zero. This is why your measured
intensities usually have maxima and minima.

Thinfilm.ini

This *.ini-file has to be located in the working directory of NanoCalc and should NOT be changed manually.
In emergency cases (= a corrupt file Thinfilm.ini) you may try to overwrite Thinfilm.ini with the default file Thinfilm.ini
(on your CD).
ATTENTION: All files from CD-ROMs are write-protected. Click on the file name in Windows Explorer with your
right mouse button and remove the write-protection.
Section [UserEdits]
In the file Thinfilm.ini there is a section [UserEdits] very near to the beginning of the file. You may edit the file
Thinfilm.ini with any text editor like notepad.exe or wordpad.exe (do not use Microsoft Word or similar programs).
Attention: be careful in editing this file ! Make a backup before you edit Thinfilm.ini !!
The section [UserEdits] contains some parameters which cannot be changed within the graphical user interface of
NanoCalc because only special users need these features.
[UserEdits]
WriteTmpFile=False
WriteRefFile=False
MinimumSearch=False
AllowPixels=True
Plot_During_Online=True
Save_During_Mapping=False
CCD_StartCounts=0
WindowShift=175
AdjustRecipes=False
Special_FFTLayer=-1
Plot_After_FFT=False
YScale_FFTLayer=0
CsvExcelExport=xls
CsvExcelSeparator=;
CsvExcelNumberFormatter=.
ExcelMargins_LRTB=2;2;2;1
UseShutter=False
SpecialLambda=-1
UseClipBoard=True
HideNanoCalc=False
StopMappingStage=False
SpectrometerSleepTime=30

WriteTmpFile:
if this flag is set to TRUE then NanoCalc will write a temporary file after each measurement. In rare cases the PC
together with its network connection may be very slow and it is advisable to set the flag to FALSE. Then it will no
longer be possible to use the feature “load last file”
WriteRefFile
if this flag is set to TRUE then NanoCalc will write a file after each reference measurement. In rare cases the PC
together with its network connection may be very slow and it is advisable to set the flag to FALSE. Then it will no
longer be possible to use the feature “load last reference”
MinimumSearch
this is reserved for a special customer (using antireflective coatings)
AllowPixels
If you disable this feature by setting the flag to FALSE it will not be possible to use the pixel mode. You gain some
speed as no recalculation for pixels is done with each measurement.
Plot_During_Online
if you set this flag to FALSE then you gain some speed during online measurements as no plots are shown
Save_During_Mapping
allows to save all spectra during mapping (time-consuming !)
Online_StartCounts
some spectrometers need a certain number of calls to the CCD pixels before they give stable results. If you set this
number to any value less than 10 (e.g. Online_StartCounts =5) you will have to wait until 5 dummy measurements
have been done. If you use a short integration time it is recommended to use values of 5-10. If you use a longer

integration time and you do not want to wait for some seconds it is recommended to set the value to zero (but be
aware that the first 1-5 measurements may not be completely correct)
AdjustRecipes
True: the main menu will contain a possibility to change a certain parameter in ALL recipe or ini-files
simultaneously
Special_FFTLayer
if any valid layer number is set to some number <> -1 (=default), the FFT result will be changed to get the thickness
result of this special layer and not the total sum of all layers (ask your software supplier for details).
There is also an application to extract the refraction index instead of thickness (ask your software supplier for details).
Plot_After_FFT
If this variable is set to FALSE only the FFT peak wil be plotted and not the extracted (=simulated) curve
YScale_FFTLayer
this number gives a zoom factor for the main FFT peak (it can be changed within the software by pressing the +
and – buttons)
csvEXcelExport
you may enter csv oder xls (example: csvEXcelExport=csv). Csv is the well-known “comma separated value”
format.
csvEXcelSeparator
here you may enter the separator for the csv-format, like “;” oder”,” (example: csvEXcelSeparator=;)
csvExcelNumberFormatter
here you may enter the number formatter for the csv-format, like “,” oder”.” (example: csvExcelNumberFormatter
=.)
ExcelMargins_LRTB
If you print Excel data LRTB means Left, Top, Right, Bottom as margins for the printout
UseShutter
In case an optical shutter exists this is a flag to use it or not
SpecialLambda
this is reserved for a special customer
UseClipBoard
Setting this value to False: the last measured value is NOT saved to clipboard
HideNanoCalc
Setting this value to True hides NanoCalc in the taskline (for remote)
StopMappingStage
Setting this value to True: after each new position the motors are disabled (to get rid of spurious noisy movements)
SpectrometerSleepTime
If the spectrometer si not used for some time (SpectrometerSleepTime) the first results are not correct. This can be
avoided by reading the spectrometer data several times. Within this SpectrometerSleepTime there are no repeated
measurements.

Appendix A

13.1 Installing and Changing the settings on a A/D converter and Interfaces
1

This section covers the basic installation instructions for our A/D converters: ADC500 , ADC1000, DAQ700 and
USB2000. Because A/D converter installation goes hand-in-hand with software installation. The A/D converters we
offer are:
ADC1000 ISA-BUS A/D CONVERTER is a high-speed, 12-bit, 8-channel, single-ended, half-length card that fits
into a slot in a desktop PC and has 1000 kHz sampling frequency.
DAQ-700 PCMCIA A/D CONVERTER from National Instruments is a 12-bit, 16-channel, single-ended card that fits
into a credit card-size slot in a notebook PC and has 100 kHz sampling frequency.
USB Interface is a universal Serial Bus Interface for ATX-Pentium Computers with Windows 98 and 2000. The
AD/Converter 12 Bit 1 MHz can run with a minimum integration time of 3ms and is integrated in the NanoCalc2000-System. The Minimum Data Transfer Time from NanoCalc-2000-System to PC is 25ms.

13.1.1

ADC1000 ISA-bus A/D Converter

The ADC1000 ISA-BUS A/D CONVERTER is a 12-bit, 8-channel, single-ended A/D card that connects our
spectrometers to desktop PCs. The AVS-PC2000 has a 2048-element linear CCD-array
fiber optic spectrometer mounted onto an ADC1000. This sturdy combination fits easily into a slot in the PC. The
following are directions for installing your ADC1000 and PC2000. Because A/D converter installation goes hand-inhand with software installation, you will find directions for installing NanoCalc Spectrometer Operating Software
included in this section as well.
Each device in or connected to your computer is assigned specific settings; it’s similar to giving each device its own
name so that your computer will know what to call and how to recognize the device. In order for your ADC1000 or
AVS-PC2000 to work as a device in your computer, it has to be assigned a Base Address setting and an IRQ
setting. The default settings for each are:
Base Address (I/O Range):
768 decimal (300 hexadecimal)
Interrupt Request (IRQ):
07
These default values are set on the A/D converter. There are dip switches on the A/D board and their positions
determine the values. These default values are set in the operating software as well. Most of the time, these default
settings will work with your computer. However, if you have many devices installed in your computer, you may have
a conflict; other devices may be using these settings. If there is a conflict with another device in your computer, you
must change the positions of the switches on the A/D board. For the ADC1000 and PC2000, there is only one bank
of switches on the A/D board: the Base Address may be changed via the first 6 switches and the IRQ may be
changed via the last 3 switches. To first check your computer to see which settings are available, follow the
instructions for the Windows system that you use.
1

Discontinued since August 2000

13.1.1.1 ADC-1000 installation
For Windows 95 and Windows 98 Users: Find Available Base Address and IRQ Settings
Go to Start | Settings | Control Panel and double-click on the System icon.
Choose the Device Manager tab and double-click on “Computer” at the top of the list.
Under View Resources, find available settings -- numbers unassigned to hardware. Note these available settings
for both the Interrupt request (IRQ) and the Input/output (Base Address). When you first run NanoCalc, you must
enter these values in the “Setup Hardware” dialog box. (Remember that Input/output settings are expressed in
hexadecimal.)

For most computers, the default settings work well. In the picture above left, it appears that the Printer occupies
IRQ 07, so the IRQ needs to be changed to 05. All computers have multiple Base Address (Input/output) settings
from which to choose.
For Windows NT Users: Find Available Base Address and IRQ Settings
Go to Start | Programs | Administrative Tools (Common) | Windows NT Diagnostics.
In the “Windows NT Diagnostics” dialog box, click on the Resources tab.
Select the IRQ button. Find an available IRQ -- a number unassigned to a device.
Select the I/O Port button. Find an available I/O Range (Base Address) -- a number or range of numbers
unassigned to a device. (The number is in hexadecimal.)
Note these available settings. When you first run NanoCalc, you must enter these values in the “Setup Hardware”
dialog box. With Windows NT, devices cannot share IRQ 's; each device must be assigned a unique IRQ.

13.1.1.2 ADC-1000 hardware installation
Installation of the ADC1000 is similar to that of any PC card installation:
Ground yourself to the computer chassis or power supply.
Turn off and unplug the computer. Then take off the computer cover.
Remove the ADC1000 from its static-shielded bag.
If necessary, change the position of the switches on the A/D board. Position the switches to match the available
settings you found in the previous section -- numbers not being used by other hardware devices. The Base
Address may be changed via the bank of switches labeled SW1 and the IRQ may be changed via the bank of
switches labeled SW2.
See Table below for switch setting positions
Find an open ISA-bus slot and remove the slot protector.
Insert the ADC1000 into an available expansion slot on the motherboard connector by gently rocking the card into
the slot. Make sure the ADC1000 is fully seated in the motherboard before screwing the tab on the ADC1000 to the
computer.
Reinstall the cover and reconnect the computer power cord.
For the ADC-1000: Connect the D37 end of the interface cable to the ADC1000 and the D25 end of the interface
cable to the spectrometer.

Base Address (SW1)
To change the Base Address settings on the ADC1000 board, see the bank of 6 dip switches labeled SW1.
Switches in the ON position have a value of zero. Switches in the OFF position have the decimal values shown.
The Base Address is the sum of the values of the switches. In the default setting, switches 5 and 6 are added to
give a total of 768. A few of the many combinations for Base Address settings are below.
Example: 768 decimal = Hex300 = 0x300 (Default Setting)
Switch #
1
2
3
on
off
Example: 784 decimal = Hex310 = 0x310
Switch #
1
on
off
Example: 800 decimal = Hex320 = 0x320
Switch #
1
on
off
Example: 816 decimal = Hex330 = 0x330
Switch #
1
on
off

Switch is in the on-upward position

IRQ Interrupt Request Settings (SW2)
To change the IRQ settings on the ADC1000/AVS-PC200 board, see the bank of 3 dip switches labeled SW2. In
the default setting, the IRQ is set to 7. Other combinations for IRQ settings follow.
IRQ 7 (Default Setting)
Switch #
7
8
on
off
IRQ 3
Switch #
on
off
IRQ 4
Switch #
on
off
IRQ 5
Switch #
on
off
IRQ 9
Switch #
on
off
IRQ 10
Switch #
on
off
IRQ 11
Switch #
on
off

Switch is in the on-upward position

Setup Hardware Dialog Box
The first time NanoCalc is started, the hardware needs to be set
up correctly. Clicking the menu „screen-spectrometer datahardware“ can do this. The parameters in this dialog box are
usually set only once -- when NanoCalc is first installed and the
software first runs.
Under Spectrometer Type, choose your spectrometer.
Under A/D Converter Type, choose ADC-1000/PC2000.
Choose Base Address as selected in the previous section.
Choose IRQ as selected in the previous section.
For your setup, only these parameters apply to your system.
(Ignore the other settings; they apply to other A/D converters.)
Click OK.

13.2 DAQ-700 PCMCIA A/D Converter
The DAQ-700 PCMCIA A/D CONVERTER is a 12-bit analog-to-digital converter card that connects our spectrometers
to notebook PCs. This 16-channel single-ended, 8-channel differential card -- also known by its National
Instruments DAQCard-700 designation -- fits into a credit card-size slot in a notebook PC. It has a 100 kHz
sampling frequency.
Before using your spectrometer, you must first configure your computer to properly detect and use the DAQ-700
and then follow several steps to use it as an interface to your Ocean Optics / Mikropack spectrometer. The
following are directions for setting up your DAQ-700. Because A/D converter installation goes hand-in-hand with
software installation, you will find directions for installing NanoCalc Spectrometer Operating Software included in
this section as well.
Install NI-DAQ
Windows 95/98 and NT users must install NI-DAQ
Driver Software -- the device driver library necessary
for Windows 95/98/NT systems to properly use the
DAQ-700.
Insert your NI-DAQ version 6 CD into your CD-ROM
drive.
After you insert your CD, a setup program should
automatically start. If it does not, run the Setup.exe
program from the CD.
The installation program has an option called Install
NI-DAQ. Select that option.
In the “Select Components” dialog box, make sure
NI-DAQ Driver Files (Minimal Install) is checked.
Choose any of the other options you wish to install.
Click Next>. Accept the default destination directory and the default Program Group.
In the “Ready to Install” dialog box, click Next>. When prompted to do so, restart your computer. You must restart
your computer at this time.
Install the DAQ-700

After the computer restarts, wait until all disk drive activity stops -- that
is, wait until your computer is completely restarted. Connect the
spectrometer cable between your DAQ-700 and your spectrometer.
Insert the DAQ-700 into any available PCMCIA slot.
Windows 95/98 and NT will play a sound consisting of two tones of
increasing pitch. If you do not hear this sound, and you do have
internal speakers in your notebook computer, try turning the speaker
volume up and reinserting the DAQ-700. If you still do not hear the
“happy” sound, contact our Technical Support Department.
To find IRQ and Base Address values, follow the instructions for the
Windows system that you use. For Windows 95/98 Users:
Configure the DAQ-700
If you hear the “happy” sound, click Start, and select Settings |
Control Panel.
Double-click the System icon. Select the Device Manager tab.
In the “Device Manager” dialog box, find the hardware group named
Data Acquisition Devices. Either double-click the group or select the
group and click Properties.
Under the Data Acquisition Devices group, find the entry for your DAQ-700. Either double-click DAQCard-700, or
select the entry and click Properties
Once you have selected your DAQCard-700 from the Device Manager, click the Resources tab. The entries here
control the hardware interface to your DAQ-700.
In this dialog box, find the check box next to Use automatic settings. Clear that check box (deselect it). We need
to know the settings of the hardware before any Ocean Optics /
Mikropack software product starts.
In the same dialog box, you will see entries for input/output Range and
Interrupt Request. The input/output Range corresponds to the Base
Address, and the Interrupt Request corresponds to the IRQ in our
software. By deselecting the Use automatic settings box in the
previous step, you disabled Plug-and-Play for the DAQ-700. But in
order to fully disable Plug-and-Play, you must also change the settings
for either (or both) the input/output Range or the Interrupt Request. To
make this change, double-click either input/output Range or
Interrupt Request. A dialog box giving the current hardware setting
appears. On the right side of the Value box are two small arrows: one
up and one down. You must use these arrows to change the hardware
interface parameters of either the input/output Range or the Interrupt
Request.
While making this change, notice the Conflict information area at the
bottom. Make sure you choose a value that says No devices are
conflicting.

If it shows a conflict, you must select a different value. After selecting
values with no conflicts, click OK. You will then see the “Creating a Forced
Configuration” message box. Click Yes.
Note your values of both the input/output Range (Base Address) and the
Interrupt Request (IRQ). When you first run NanoCalc, you must enter
these values in the “Setup Hardware” dialog box.

For Windows NT Users: Find the IRQ and I/O Range
If you hear the “happy” sound, go to Start | Programs |
Administrative Tools (Common) | Windows NT Diagnostics.
In the “Windows NT Diagnostics” dialog box, click on the
Resources tab.
Select the IRQ button. Find the IRQ that your computer
assigned to the A/D converter you are using to interface to your
spectrometer. Note this number.
Select the I/O Port button. Find the I/O Range (Base Address)
that your computer assigned to the DAQ-700 to interface to your
spectrometer. Note this number. (This number is in
hexadecimal.)

Software Installation
Running the Install program
NanoCalc needs to be installed by executing the file INSTALL.EXE on the CD-ROM. After all files have been
installed, Windows needs to be restarted.
Installation Dialogs
The Install program will check the system configuration of the computer. If no problems are detected, the first
dialog is the “Welcome” dialog with some general information. In the next dialog, the destination directory for the
NanoCalc software can be changed. The default destination directory is C:\Programme\NanoCalc If you want to
install the software to a different directory, click the Browse button, select a new directory and click OK. If the
specified directory does not exist, it will be created.
In the next dialog, the name for the program manager group can be changed. After this, the “Start Installation”
dialog is shown. After clicking the “next” button, the installation program starts installing. After all files have been
installed, the “Installation Complete” dialog shows up. After clicking the “Finish” button, the last dialog is shown
which contains the following information: “This system must be restarted to complete the installation. Press the OK
button to restart the computer. Press Cancel to return to Windows without restarting.
Setup Hardware Dialog Box
The first time NanoCalc is started, the hardware needs to be set
up correctly. Clicking the menu „screen-spectrometer datahardware“ can do this. The parameters in this dialog box are
usually set only once -- when NanoCalc is first installed and the
software first runs.
Under Spectrometer Type, choose your spectrometer.
Under A/D Converter Type, choose DAQ700.
Choose Base Address as selected in the previous section.
Choose IRQ as selected in the previous section.
For your setup, only these parameters apply to your system.
(Ignore the other settings; they apply to other A/D converters.)
Click OK.
Specifications
Type
A/D resolution, sampling frequency
Channels
Interface cable

PCMCIA Type II
12 bit @ 100 kHz
16-channel single ended, 8-channels differential
50 Pin connector to PCMCIA slot, 25-pin to spectrometer

13.3 NanoCalc-2000 Systems with ADC1000-USB Installation
The NanoCalc-2000 Systems delivered from October 2001 and later have an internal AD-Converter as standard
and the communicates between computer and NanoCalc works via USB-Serial Interface. This AD-Converter is
called ADC-1000-USB. (AD-Converter, 1MHz, USB Interface)
After installing the NanoCalc Software, connect the ADC1000-USB with the USB cable delivered with the
system and insert the cable to your computer’s USB port. If you use Windows2000, an error dialog may
appear caused by the missing file ezusb.sys. In that case, please refer to the section “Troubleshooting
installation ADC1000-USB with Windows2000” on how to solve this problem.
Setup Hardware Dialog Box
When the NanoCalc Software runs the first time, the hardware needs to be set up correctly. Go to the
Setup > Hardware menu. The parameters in this dialog box are usually set by the user only once when the
NanoCalc software first runs.
Under Spectrometer Type, choose S2000 (see picture1)
Under A/D Converter Type, choose ADC-1000-USB (see picture2)
Choose the USB Serial Number adressed to the NanoCalc System (see picture3) Click OK.

picture1

picture2

picture3

Specifications
Type
A/D resolution, sampling frequency
Channels
Interface cable
Data Transfer rate
Software requirements
Computer requirements

USB universal serial Bus
12 bit @ 1 MHz integrated in NanoCalc-2000-System
16-channel single ended, 8-channels differential
USB interface cable (Standard)
Min. 25ms (integration time 3 ms)
WIN 98, WIN 2000
ATX-IBM compatible with Pentium or better microprocessor,
32 MB RAM and Windows98 or Windows2000

13.3.1

Trouble Shooting with ADC-1000-USB

If you accidentally connected the ADC-1000-USB to your PC before installing the NanoCalc Software, or if you use
an older version of the NanoCalc Software, you will get a message that Windows has not installed a driver for the
device. To rectify an incorrect installation follow these steps:
Navigate to the Device Manager. If you use Windows98, select Start > Settings > Control Panel. Double-click
the System icon. Select the Device Manager tab. For Windows2000 systems, right click My Computer, select
Properties, select Hardware tab and click on the Device Manager button.
Scroll down until you see Other devices.
Under Other devices you will see ADC-1000-USB with a large question mark, hit the remove button.
A warning box will appear to ask if it is OK to remove the USB device, click OK.
Unplug the ADC-1000-USB from your PC and reinstall (new version of) the NanoCalc software.
Now you can plug in the ADC-1000-USB again and start the NanoCalc software.

13.3.2

Known problems under Windows95 and Windows2000

Windows95
On some computers which run under Windows95 the figures on the buttons in the toolbar were not visible. This is a
known Windows95 problem for which a utility program (401comupd.exe) can be found on the internet at:
http://www.microsoft.com/msdownload/ieplatform/ie/comctrl.asp
Of course we can also send this utility program on request per attached e-mail. After executing 401comupd.exe,
the problem is solved.

Windows2000
After installing the NanoCalc Software and connecting the USB cable with the NanoCalc-System and the
computer’s USB port, Windows2000 shows in some occasions the following dialog.

The file ezusb.sys has been installed by the NanoCalc installation program into the directory:
winnt\system32\drivers\, on the drive where Windows2000 has been installed (in most cases c:\, but in the
following example f:\). Normally, this file will be found automatically by Windows2000 in this directory. If the dialog
above is shown, please browse to the directory to tell Windows2000 where it is located. By clicking the open button
in the dialog at the right, the problem is solved.

Also the following error message can occur with the file ooi_usb.inf.
This file has been installed by the NanoCalc installation program into the directory WINNT\INF, on the drive where
Windows2000 has been installed (in most cases c:\, but in this example f:\). Normally, this file will be found
automatically by Windows2000 in this directory. If the dialog above is shown, please browse to the \winnt\inf\
directory to tell Windows2000 where it is located.

Note that the files and folders of the type inf can be hidden, so the browser will not display the files of this type.
Then, you need to select under the Windows explorer menu option: Tools/Folder Options (in the View TAB), the
“Show hidden files and folders” option, instead of the “Do not show hidden files and folders”. See figure below.

After browsing to the file ooi_usb.inf, and clicking the Open button, NanoCalc can be started. The Hardware
dialog will be displayed in which you need to set the spectrometer type to S2000 and the A/D converter type to
ADC1000-USB (depending on the hardware that is connected. Select the USB Serial number of the attached
USB device, instead of the (default) option First Available USB.

APPENDIX B

14.1 NanoCalc-Quick-Setup
This Appendix helps you step by step to get a first measurement. This description is using the reference stepwafer
from Mikropack, SiO2-Steps on Si-Wafer.
Install the NanoCalc software and AD-Converter (see Appendix A)
Start the computer and lightsource

Plug-In the USB-Cable (or blue AD-Cable), then install fibercable between the spectrometer and
lightsource.
Start the NanoCalc software

Put the reference (Si-Wafer) on the table (Bare Silicon)
Click the "Continuous mode" and “Reference” button

Set the integration time to 3 ms
Now adjust the fiber distance between wafer and fiber in that way that you get the highest possible signal.
A typical distance is 1-5 mm
Now adjust the integration time in that way that the Max-Level is around 0.8 on your screen

Click again the "Continuous mode" button to stop the measurement
Click the "Reference" button

Now you are ready to work with the NanoCalc System!

Example I:
Measure SiO2 on a Si-Wafer
Go to menu Edit layer structure.

Settings:
L1 (layer1)
oxides SiO2_(therm)
bulk (substrate) semiconductors Si
ref (reference) semiconductors
user limits
0 nm - 500 nm
estimated thickness
200 nm

Go to menu Screen > Frequency limits
adjust the plot limits and the extraction range to:
System

max. plot limits [nm]

max. extraction range [nm]

UV/VIS

250 – 850

300 – 800

VIS

350 – 900

400 – 850

NIR

650 – 1100

700 – 1050

VIS / NIR

400 – 1050

450 – 1000

UV / VIS / NIR

250 – 1100

300 - 1050

For thin materials choose a bigger range, for thicker materials (NIR) choose a smaller range and set the smoothing
factor 1.

Measure the reference again
Then put the first step of the wafer under the fiber and push the button "Measure" than "Analyze".

The two curves from measure and analyze should be nearly the same. How good they fit can you see in the left
lower corner as Quality of Fit.
Please try the other steps on the wafer.
Save these settings as a recipe in menu “File” and “Save as recipe” under the name “Si_SiO2.lrc”.

Example II:
Transparent Samples
Nb2O5 on Glass (Borosilicat 40)
a.)

RTL-Stage (Reflectance mode)

Lighttrap

Sample (Nb2O5 on Borosilicat40)

Fiber

RTL-Stage

Please accept that Nb2O5 has a higher reflectivity than glass without coating, therefore we have to adjust the
integration time with the substrat plus layer first and take the reference from the substrate without any changes.
Put the Nb2O5 glass onto the RTL-Stage. We need a light trap (black absorber material) behind the glass material,
to prevent reflections or ambient light.
Click on the "Continuous mode" reference button.
Adjust the fiber distance between sample and fiber in that way that you get the highest possible signal. A typical
distance is 1-5 mm
Now adjust the integration time in that way that the Max-Level is around 0.8
Now put the reference glass (BK7) on the table.
Click the button "Reference".
Now you are ready to measure, but as every time we have to go to the menu Edit layer structure first.

Settings:
L1 (layer1)
oxides Nb2O5
bulk (substrate) glasses Borofloat40
ref (reference) glasses BK7
user limits
100 nm - 800 nm
estimated thickness
400 nm

Go to menu Screen > frequency limits
adjust the plot limits and the extraction range to:
max. plot limits [nm]

max. extraction range [nm]

350 - 1050

400 - 1000

Please make again a reference measurement.
Now put the test-glass under the fiber and push the button "Measure" than "Analyze".

The two curves from measure and analyze should be nearly the same. How good they fit can you see in the left
lower corner as Quality of Fit. The difference in amplitude comes from the “wrong” reference BK7 instead of
Borosilicat 40 and the inexact values for the n(lambda) and k(lambda) from glass and layer. This does not effect
the thickness value in this case.

Please try different points on the wafer. Activate the continuous mode and analyze, and move the wafer by
tweezers.
Save these settings as a recipe in menu “File” and “Save as recipe” under the name Nb2O5_Boro40.lrc”.

RTL-Stage with 2 COL-UV lenses (Transmission mode)

Fiber to the spectrometer

COL-UV lenses

Sample (Nb2O5 on Borosilicat40)

Fiber from the lightsource
RTL-Stage

Change to Transmission mode and go to menu Screen > Operationmode > Measurementmode > Transmission
mode.
Please accept that Nb2O5 has a higher reflectivity than glass without coating, therefore we have to adjust the
integration time with the substrat plus layer first and take the reference from the substrate without any changes.
Put the Nb2O5 glass on the RTL-Stage.
Click on the "Continuous mode" button.
Adjust the fiber distance between wafer and fiber in that way that you get the highest signal. A typical distance is
1-5 mm.
Now adjust the integration time in that way that the Max-Level is around 0.8.
Now put the reference glass (BK7) on the table.
Click the "Reference" button.
Now you are ready to measure.

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NanoCalc Manual Nano Calc V3

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