Part 1

Spectroscopic Ellipsometry:
Theory and Fundamentals

Thomas Wagner
October 8th, 2008
 Seminar Overview
Part 1: Theory & Fundamentals
§ What is Ellipsometry?
§ Light and Polarization
§ Ellipsometric Measurements
§ Light Interactions with materials
§ Optical Constants
Part 3: Ellipsometry Solutions from J.A. Woollam Co.
§ Instrument Lines and Accessories
§ Software Packages and Capabilities
© 2008, All Rights Reserved
Part 2: Data Analysis & Applications
§ What Can Ellipsometry Measure?
§ Optical Models and Regression
§ Thickness, Optical Constants
§ Roughness, Grading
§ Anisotropy
2
 History

§ Founded in 1987 by
Professor John A. Woollam
§ Based on spin-off of
research at University of
Nebraska

Start SBIR
Contracts

VASE M-44, M-88 M-2000 IR VUV alpha-SE RC2

Product Timeline
1987 1997 500th 1000th 2007
Company SE shipped SE shipped
Founded

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 Company Profile

§ ~41 employees:
– 21 engineer/physicist
– 15 with M.S. or PhD.

J.A. Woollam Co., Inc.

Lincoln, Nebraska

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Innovation in Spectroscopic Ellipsometry

§ Continued research leads to:

– New Technology
• ~ 60 US patents from 1996-2006
– New Products: 6 current product lines
VASE IR-VASE RC2

VUV-VASE M-2000 alpha-SE

© 2008, All Rights Reserved 5

 Seminar Overview
Part 1: Theory & Fundamentals
§ What is Ellipsometry?
§ Light and Polarization
§ Ellipsometric Measurements
§ Light Interactions with materials
§ Optical Constants
Part 3: Ellipsometry Solutions from J.A. Woollam Co.
§ Instrument Lines and Accessories
§ Software Packages and Capabilities
© 2008, All Rights Reserved
Part 2: Data Analysis & Applications
§ What Can Ellipsometry Measure?
§ Optical Models and Regression
§ Thickness, Optical Constants
§ Roughness, Grading
§ Anisotropy
6
 What is Ellipsometry?

§ Measures the polarization change when

light reflects from a surface.
1. Known input polarization

E p-plane

s-plane 3. Measure output polarization

p-plane
E
s-plane

plane of incidence

2. reflect off sample ...

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 Electromagnetic Plane Wave

§ From Maxwell’s equations we can describe a plane wave:

 2π 
E ( z , t ) = E0 sin  − ( z − vt ) + ξ 
 λ  arbitrary phase

amplitude velocity
X

Electric field, E(z,t) wavelength

Z Direction
Magnetic field, B(z,t)
of propagation

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 Linearly Polarized Light

Orthogonal EX & EY:

§ waves are in phase with each other
§ Result : linearly polarized wave
– the 'plane of vibration' depends on relative amplitudes of Ex & EY
Y

wave1

wave2
Z

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 Circularly Polarized Light

Orthogonal EX & EY:

§ 90° out-of-phase & equal amplitude
§ Result : circularly polarized wave
Y

wave1

wave2

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 Elliptically Polarized Light

Orthogonal EX & EY:

§ Arbitrary phase & amplitude
§ Result : Elliptically polarized wave
– linear and circular are subsets of elliptical polarization
– Most general description of polarization state

wave1

wave2
Z

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 Ellipsometric Measurement
§ Ellipsometry measures the change in polarization of light
reflected from sample.
§ Uses the p- (parallel) and s- (perpendicular, from German
“senkrecht”) coordinate system, relative to the sample
plane of incidence.
§ Ratio of p/s reflectivity quantified by Ψ and ∆ parameters.

1. Known input polarization

E p-plane

i∆
rp
s-plane
tan( ψ )e =
rs p-plane
3. Measure output polarization

E
s-plane

plane of incidence

2. reflect off sample ...

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 Ellipsometric Data Definition

§ Defined as the ratio of p/s reflectivity

– ~
rp and ~
rs are the complex Fresnel reflection coefficients
§ Ψ (Psi) Amplitude of ratio
§ ∆ (Delta) Phase of ratio
§ ρ (rho) complex reflectivity ratio

E out
Ein~
rp rp i (δ p −δ s )
ρ = tan(Ψ )e = i∆ p
out
p
=~ =
in
e
E s Es rs rs

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 Intensity vs. Polarization

2
§ Intensity = “Size” of Electric field. I∝E
§ Polarization = “Shape” of Electric field travel.

Different Size
(Different
Intensity)
Y E
Y More
Less
E Intense
Intense
Same Shape!
X
(same
X
Polarization)

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 Ellipsometry Advantages
§ Repeatable & accurate:
– self-referencing (single-beam experiment)
measures ratio of orthogonal components Ep/Es
Thus, reduced problems with:
• Source Fluctuation
• Light Beam Overlapping Small Samples

§ Sensitive:
– Phase term ∆ is very sensitive to film thickness

§ Measures two parameters

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 Ellipsometry vs. Reflectometry

Ψ Generated Data
§ Phase information gives 40

Ellipsometry higher 30
Gen E 75° (1)
Gen E 75° (2)

Ψ in degrees
sensitivity to very thin 20
1nm & 2nm oxide
films. on Si
10

0
R Generated Data
200 400 600
Wavelength (nm)
800 1000

0.80
180

0.70 Gen sR 0° (1)

∆ 150 Gen E 75° (1)
Gen sR 0° (2) Gen E 75° (2)

0.60 120
Reflection

∆ in degrees
90
0.50 1nm & 2nm oxide
on Si 60
0.40
1nm & 2nm oxide
30 on Si
0.30
200 400 600 800 1000 0
200 400 600 800 1000
Wavelength (nm)
Wavelength (nm)

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 How an Ellipsometer Works

§ Every Ellipsometer contains a light source and

detector, polarization state generator and analyzer
§ SE also needs wavelength selection.

Light
Detector
Source

Sample
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 Common Optical Elements

§ Polarizers: pass linearly polarized light.

§ Compensators: Retard one orientation by 90° to
convert linear to circular light.
X

Polarizer
Axis
Y Compensator
Axis

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 Ellipsometer Configurations

Rotating Analyzer (RAE)

P S A
Rotating Polarizer (RPE)

P S A
Light Source

Rotating Compensator (RCE)

Detector
P C S A
Polarization Modulation (PME)

P M S A
Null Ellipsometer

P C S A
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 Operation of Rotating Analyzer

Linearly Polarized Circularly Polarized

Input beam
Rotating Analyzer Input beam (reflected off sample)
(reflected off sample)

Detector
Detector

converts light
converts light
to voltage
to voltage
V(t) V(t)

t t

§ 100% modulated sinusoidal signal at § constant DC signal, as the circularly

twice the analyzer rotational polarized beam always has equal
frequency component through rotating
§ light totally extinguished when analyzer, regardless of orientation
analyzer is ‘crossed’ with linearly
polarized input beam

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 How RAE measures Ψ and ∆

Elliptically Polarized
Rotating Analyzer:

Input beam
(reflected off sample)

Detector

V(t)
From Jones Matrix analysis of the RAE optical system:
V(t) = DC + α cos(2ω
ωt) + β sin(2ω
ωt)
t

a tan 2 Ψ - tan 2 P
α = DC =
tan2 Ψ + tan 2 P α and β are normalized
b 2 tan Ψ cos ∆ tan P Fourier coefficients
β = =
DC tan 2 Ψ + tan2 P
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 Sensitivity of RAE Ellipsometer

§ Invert equations to get:

1+ α β
tan( ψ ) = tan( P) cos( ∆ ) =
1− α 1 - α2
§ Differentials show sources of noise:
– Noise minimized when ψ = P (P is the input polarizer azimuth)
– Noise in Delta becomes large when:
∆ = 0 or ∆ = 180
§ Only sensitive to cos(∆), can not determine
the “handedness” of ∆

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 Why Rotating Analyzer Design?

§ Advantages:
– Simple Optical Design (only 2 polarizers)
– No wavelength Dependent optics:
sample is the only wavelength dependent element!
– Measured Intensity is a very simple Fourier spectrum with
one AC component and DC background.
– Rotating element is placed directly before the detector,
so no problems with beam-deviation.
§ Main Disadvantage:
Poor accuracy when Delta close to 0° or 180°
– Can cause problems, e.g., on transparent substrates,
measuring at angles away from the Brewster angle, etc.

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 AutoRetarder™ Operation:

§ Incorporated in our VASE

instrument
§ Adjusts polarization of light
before the sample
§ Multiple AutoRetarder positions
are used to achieve highest
accuracy 11nm SiO2 on Si
180
§ Measures all values of Ψ and ∆
150
with no insensitive regions.

∆ in degrees
120

90
Model Fit
Exp E 40°
Exp E 75°
60

30
0 300 600 900 1200 1500 1800
Wavelength (nm)

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 Rotating Compensator

Until recently, lack of rotatable

§ Incorporated in all JAWCo spectroscopic compensators has
kept this technology from
instruments (except VASE)
widespread use!
§ Accurate over complete
range
– Psi = 0 to 90, Delta = 0 to 360

§ Minimizes source and

detector polarization
sensitivity
§ No DC signal required to
measure Psi and Delta
– DC signal allows depolarization to
be measured SAMPLE

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 Light Interaction with Materials

index, n0
§ Reflection: φ0 = φr
φ0 φr

§ Refraction (Snell’s Law):

n0 sin φ0 = n1 sin φ1 index, n1

φ1

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 Fresnel Coefficients

§ Describe interface reflection Ep Ep

vs. incident angle

Es
– for p- and s- polarized light Es
Ep

§ Ratio of amplitudes of plane of

incidence
outgoing to incoming wave Es

§ Reflection increases with

difference in index

 E0 r  n cos θ i − nt cos θ t  E0 r  n cosθ i − ni cosθ t

rs =   = i rp =   = t
 E0 i  s ni cos θ i + nt cos θ t  E0 i  p ni cosθ t + nt cosθ i

 E0 t  2ni cosθ i E  2ni cosθ i

t s =   = t p =  0t  =
 E0 i  s ni cosθ i + nt cosθ t  E0i  p ni cosθ t + nt cosθ i

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 Light Interaction with a Thin Film

§ Reflection/Transmission occurs at each interface

§ Multiple beams combine coherently, leading to
constructive/destructive interference

rtot = r01 + t01r12t10 e -2iβ + t01r12 r10t10 e -4iβ + ...

2

r01
t01 r12 t10e-2iβ
n~0 t01 r12 r10 r12 t10e-4iβ
n~1
Film Phase Thickness d1

 d1  n~2
β = 2π  n1 cosθ1
λ

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 What are Optical Constants?

Describe how materials and light interact.

§ n = “refractive index”
– phase velocity = c/n
– direction of propagation (refraction)
§ k = “extinction coefficient”
– Loss of wave energy to the material

§ Together “Complex Refractive Index”: n~ = n + ik

§ or “Complex Dielectric Function”:
~
ε = ε 1 + iε 2
~ ~
ε =n 2
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 Kramers-Kronig Relation

§ Real and imaginary

ε1
parts depend on each ε2
other.
2 ∞ ω ′ε (ω ′ )
ε 1 (ω ) = 1 + P ∫ 2
π 0 ω′ −ω
2
2
dω ′

n
§ Absorption causes k
anomalous dispersion.

Frequency (energy)

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 Normal Dispersion: Transparent

§ Index increases for shorter wavelengths.

§ Higher index for stronger UV absorption.
4
SiO2
Si3N4
Si
3
Index, n

1
0 500 1000 1500 2000
Wavelength in nm

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 Anomalous Dispersion

§ When absorption increases, the index will “turn” and decrease

with decreasing wavelength. As absorption decreases again,
index returns to “normal”

Resonant Absorption
2.4 0.8

Extinction Coefficientk''
2.2
Index of refractionn''

0.6

2.0
0.4
1.8 n
k
0.2
1.6

1.4 0.0
200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400
Wavelength (nm)

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 Absorbing Region

Rutile (TiO2 )
§ Electric field loses energy
to a material process UV to IR
Normal
– Electronic Transition Anomalous
Dispersion
Anomalous
Dispersion Dispersion
– Molecular Vibration
Lattice Electronic
– Lattice Vibration Transparent
Vibrations Transitions
– Free-carrier 25 60
IR Visible UV
13 50

0 40
ε1

ε2
-13 ε1 30
ε2
-25 20

-38 10

-50 0
0.03 0.1 0.3 1 3 10
Photon Energy (eV)

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 Infrared Absorption

§ Molecular vibrations:

§ Free carriers (conductivity): 4.0 8

Extinction Coefficient, k
Index of refraction, n
3.5 n
Nickel 7
k
E 3.0
6

-e 2.5
5
4
Free carriers accelerated by E-field 2.0
3
1.5 2
1.0 1
0 300 600 900 1200 1500 1800
Wavelength (nm)

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 Electronic Transition

§ Electrons in energy bands with gap between valence and conduction band.
§ If photon has energy larger than gap, electron may excite to higher state.

50

Imag(Dielectric Constant), ε2
Silicon
40 GaAs

30

20

10

0
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0 5.0 6.0 7.0
Photon Energy (eV)

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 Further Reading
1. R.M.A.Azzam, and N.M.Bashara, Ellipsometry and Polarized Light, North Holland Press,
Amsterdam 1977, Second edition, 1987.

2. H.G.Tompkins, and W.A.McGahan, Spectroscopic Ellipsometry and Reflectometry, John Wiley & Sons,
New York, 1999.

3. H.G.Tompkins and E.A.Irene (eds.) Handbook of Ellipsometry, William Andrew Publishing, New York, in
press.

4. H. Fujiwara, Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Principles and Applications, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 2007.

International Conference on Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (Proceedings)

5. A.C.Boccara, C.Pickering, J.Rivory (eds.) Spectroscopic Ellipsometry, Elsevier Publishing, Amsterdam,

1993.

6. R.W.Collins, D.E.Aspnes, and E.A.Irene (eds.) “Proceedings from the Second International Conference
on Spectroscopic ellipsometry” In: Thin Solid Films, vols. 313-314, 1998.

7. M.Fried, K.Hingerl, and J. Humlicek (eds.), “Proceedings from the Third International Conference on
Spectroscopic ellipsometry”. In: Thin Solid Films, vols. 455-456 , 2004.

8. “Proceedings from the Fourth International Conference on Spectroscopic ellipsometry”, to be

published…

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 Break!!

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