The method of evaluating an epitaxial wafer includes performing evaluation of an epitaxial wafer by detecting, as a light point defect, an abnormal substance selected from the group consisting of a defect and a surface deposit of an epitaxial wafer to be evaluated with a surface inspection apparatus including two types of incidence systems with different incidence angles and two types of light receiving systems with different light receiving angles, based on two types of measurement results.

A defect observation method for observing a defect on a sample detected by another inspection device with a scanning electron microscope including the steps of: optically detecting the defect using the position information for the defect: illuminating the sample including the defect with an illumination intensity pattern having periodic intensity variation in two dimensions by irradiating a plurality of illumination light beams onto the surface of the sample while phase modulating the light beams in a single direction and successively moving the light beams in small movements in a direction different from the single direction, imaging the surface of the sample that is illuminated by the illumination intensity pattern having periodic intensity variation in two dimensions and includes the defect detected by the other inspection device, and detecting the defect detected by the other inspection device from the image obtained through the imaging of the surface of the sample.

Methods and systems for detecting defects on a wafer are provided. One method includes determining difference values for pixels in first output for a wafer generated using a first optics mode of an inspection system and determining other values for pixels in second output for the wafer generated using a second optics mode of the inspection system. The first and second optics modes are different from each other. The method also includes generating a two-dimensional scatter plot of the difference values and the other values for the pixels in the first and second output corresponding to substantially the same locations on the wafer. The method further includes detecting defects on the wafer based on the two-dimensional scatter plot.

Inspection with multiple illumination regions includes generating a primary beam of illumination directed along a primary illumination direction, transmitting a portion of the primary beam of illumination along a first illumination direction, deflecting a portion of the primary beam of illumination along a second illumination direction different from the first illumination direction with one or more angular selection elements, focusing the transmitted portion of the primary beam of illumination onto a first inspection region of the substrate, and focusing the deflected portion of the primary beam of illumination onto a second inspection region of the substrate being spatially separated from the first inspection region.

The present disclosure relates to a method of providing a light signal separation unit in an optical reflective microscope system, said optical reflective microscope system comprising an objective lens arrangement configured to collect light reflected off a plurality of field points on an object and to onwardly transmit a light beam formed from the collected light and said light signal separation unit having a reflective surface with a central transmissive region formed therein, wherein said central transmissive region is arranged to allow therethrough a central portion of said light beam transmitted from said objective lens arrangement while said reflective surface is arranged to reflect a peripheral portion of said light beam transmitted from said objective lens arrangement. The method comprises determining an axial position at which to position said light signal separation unit. The axial position being a position along an optical axis of said objective lens arrangement, contiguous to an exit pupil of said objective lens arrangement, at which beam deformation of said light beam is substantially minimal; determining a dimension of a cross section of said light beam at said axial position; and determining a dimension of said central transmissive region based on said dimension of said cross section of said light beam and said lateral displacement at said axial position.

An optical inspection system for pre-bonding inspection system includes a stage on which a sample to be inspected is placed, a sensor, optical assemblies, each including an optical head having optics to direct a sample field-of-view (FOV) to a portion of the sample, a first light source configured to illuminate the sample at a first oblique angle, a second light source configured to illuminate the sample at a second oblique angle, a focusing lens to focus a first optical image of the portion of the sample generated by the first light source, and a second optical image of the portion of the sample generated by the second light source onto a segment of the sensor, and a controller configured to combine the first optical image and the second optical image generated by each optical assembly, and generate a map of point defects on the sample.

An optical inspection system for pre-bonding inspection includes a stage having a surface on which a sample to be inspected is placed, the surface of the sample having at least parts with a two dimensional (2D) periodic pattern which may include defects, an optical head including optics, a dark-field illuminator configured to illuminate the surface of the sample at an first angle, wherein the first angle is an oblique angle, a bright-field illuminator configured to illuminate the surface at a second angle, a dark-field collection path, a bright-field collection path, and a sensor configured to detect light transmitted from the dark-field illuminator, scattered at the surface of the sample, collected by the optical head, and relayed through the dark-field collection path, and light transmitted from the bright-field illuminator, reflected at the surface of the sample, and relayed through the bright-field collection path.

An optical sensing system and an optical sensing method are provided. The system includes a bright-field light source, a dark-field light source, an optical detecting circuit, and a processing circuit. The processing circuit performs a floor type detection process, including: controlling the dark-field light source to provide dark-field illumination; receiving, by the optical detecting circuit, scattered lights of the dark-field light source; executing a dark-field computation process to obtain a first optical characteristic, and determining whether the first optical characteristic meets a first surface condition; in the negative, determining that a floor is a first type; in the affirmative, controlling the bright-field light source to provide bright-field illumination; receiving, by the optical detecting circuit, scattered lights of the bright-field light source; executing a bright-field computation process to obtain a second optical characteristic, and determining whether the second optical characteristic meets a second surface condition.

A defect inspection apparatus including: a first illumination optical system which is configured to illuminate the inspection area on a sample surface from a normal line direction or a direction near thereof with respect to said sample surface; a second illumination optical system which is configured to illuminate said inspection area from a slant direction with respect to said sample surface; a detection optical system having a plurality of first detectors which are located, in front of, on the sides of, and behind said inspection area, respectively, with respect to the illumination direction of said second illumination optical system, and where the regular reflected light component, from said sample surface, by illumination light of said second illumination optical system, is not converged; and a signal processing system which is configured to inspect a defect, upon basis of signals obtained from said plurality of first detectors.

An inspection system for inspection a surface of a substrate, the inspection system may include an interface for holding the substrate; a movement mechanism for moving the interface, thereby moving the substrate between different positions; a bright field light source that is configured to illuminate different bright field illuminated parts of the surface of the substrate when the substrate is positioned at the different positions; at least one dark field light source that is configured to illuminate different dark field illuminated parts of the surface of the substrate when the substrate is positioned at the different positions; and a camera that is configured to: (a) generate bright field detection signals in response to light that is detected by the camera as a result of the illumination of the different bright field illuminated parts; and (b) generate dark field detection signals in response to light that is detected by the camera as a result of the illumination of the different dark field illuminated parts; and wherein light that is detected by the camera as the result of the illumination of the different bright field illuminated parts and as the result of the illumination of the different dark field illuminated parts does not include an image of the camera.