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- Title
Nanoscale Three-Dimensional Imaging of Integrated Circuits Using a Scanning Electron Microscope and Transition-Edge Sensor Spectrometer.
- Authors
Nakamura, Nathan; Szypryt, Paul; Dagel, Amber L.; Alpert, Bradley K.; Bennett, Douglas A.; Doriese, William Bertrand; Durkin, Malcolm; Fowler, Joseph W.; Fox, Dylan T.; Gard, Johnathon D.; Goodner, Ryan N.; Harris, James Zachariah; Hilton, Gene C.; Jimenez, Edward S.; Kernen, Burke L.; Larson, Kurt W.; Levine, Zachary H.; McArthur, Daniel; Morgan, Kelsey M.; O'Neil, Galen C.
- Abstract
X-ray nanotomography is a powerful tool for the characterization of nanoscale materials and structures, but it is difficult to implement due to the competing requirements of X-ray flux and spot size. Due to this constraint, state-of-the-art nanotomography is predominantly performed at large synchrotron facilities. We present a laboratory-scale nanotomography instrument that achieves nanoscale spatial resolution while addressing the limitations of conventional tomography tools. The instrument combines the electron beam of a scanning electron microscope (SEM) with the precise, broadband X-ray detection of a superconducting transition-edge sensor (TES) microcalorimeter. The electron beam generates a highly focused X-ray spot on a metal target held micrometers away from the sample of interest, while the TES spectrometer isolates target photons with a high signal-to-noise ratio. This combination of a focused X-ray spot, energy-resolved X-ray detection, and unique system geometry enables nanoscale, element-specific X-ray imaging in a compact footprint. The proof of concept for this approach to X-ray nanotomography is demonstrated by imaging 160 nm features in three dimensions in six layers of a Cu-SiO2 integrated circuit, and a path toward finer resolution and enhanced imaging capabilities is discussed.
- Subjects
THREE-dimensional integrated circuits; X-ray detection; SCANNING electron microscopes; X-ray imaging; SPECTROMETERS; ELECTRON beams; NANOSTRUCTURED materials
- Publication
Sensors (14248220), 2024, Vol 24, Issue 9, p2890
- ISSN
1424-8220
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/s24092890