The European nanometrology landscape

Abstract

This review paper summarizes the European nanometrology landscape from a technical perspective. Dimensional and chemical nanometrology are discussed first as they underpin many of the developments in other areas of nanometrology. Applications for the measurement of thin film parameters are followed by two of the most widely relevant families of functional properties: measurement of mechanical and electrical properties at the nanoscale. Nanostructured materials and surfaces, which are seen as key materials areas having specific metrology challenges, are covered next. The final section describes biological nanometrology, which is perhaps the most interdisciplinary applications area, and presents unique challenges. Within each area, a review is provided of current status, the capabilities and limitations of current techniques and instruments, and future directions being driven by emerging industrial measurement requirements. Issues of traceability, standardization, national and international programmes, regulation and skills development will be discussed in a future paper.

Traceable GISAXS measurements for pitch determination of a 25 nm self-assembled polymer grating

“…What all these different applications have in common is the need for suitable metrology tools to measure surface and subsurface structural parameters with sufficient accuracy, which is the field of dimensional nanometrology [19,20]. Although there is a large variety of different techniques available, ranging from direct methods like criticaldimension electron microscopy (CD-SEM) [21,22] and atomic force microscopy (AFM) [23,24] to indirect methods like X-ray small-angle scattering (SAXS) and grazing in- * contact: jan.wernecke@ptb.de cidence SAXS (GISAXS) [25][26][27], critical dimension SAXS (CD-SAXS) [28][29][30], or extreme UV (EUV) scatterometry [31,32], all of them have very specific advantages and drawbacks.…”

Scientific basis of nanotechnology, implications for the food sector and future trends

“…stability of matrix, type of bond, end-of-life behavior) Overall, despite the availability of an impressive number of microscopies and related techniques, there are many metrological issues that have to be yet better defined at the nanoscale. Nanometrology is a key enabling technology for quality control at the nanoscale and, in the last years, many governments worldwide have promoted nanotechnology policies and have taken the preliminary steps towards nanometrology strategies, for example in support of pre-normative R&D and standardization work (Leach et al, 2011).…”

Contribution of the Refractive Index Fluctuations to the Length Noise in Displacement Interferometry

“…The concept of instrumentation for nanometrology has resulted in the combination of a microscope with a measuring system capable of delivering the accuracy and precision needed on the nanoscale with traceability to the primary length standard. The standard configuration consists of a scanning probe microscope (SPM) and a coordinate multiaxis positioning system which moves the stage with a sample with interferometric measurement of displacement [1], [2].…”