The invention provides an apparatus for inspecting a light transmissible optical component. The apparatus comprises an image capturing module arranged on a first side of a support configured to hold a light transmissible optical component whilst it is being inspected. The apparatus includes an illumination device configured to shape light from a light source and to illuminate a selected portion of a surface of said light transmissible optical component with said shaped light to enable the image capturing module to capture any of a bright field image, a dark field image, or a combined bright field and dark field image of the light transmissible optical component being held by the support.

A inspection system includes an illumination source to generate an illumination beam, focusing elements to direct the illumination beam to a sample, a detector, collection elements configured to direct radiation emanating from the sample to the detector, a detection mode control device to image the sample in two or more detection modes such that the detector generates two or more collection signals based on the two or more detection modes, and a controller. Radiation emanating from the sample includes at least radiation specularly reflected by the sample and radiation scattered by the sample. The controller determines defect scattering characteristics associated with radiation scattered by defects on the sample based on the two or more collection signals. The controller also classifies the one or more particles according to a set of predetermined defect classifications based on the one or more defect scattering characteristics.

Systems and methods for illuminating and/or inspecting one or more features of a unit under test (UUT) are disclosed herein. A system configured in accordance with embodiments of the present technology can include, for example, a machine, one or more diffuser elements, and/or one or more light sources. The system can create and adjust brightfield illumination profiles (e.g., uniform, brightfield illumination profiles) on portions (e.g., on curved features) of the UUT by, for example, using the one or more light sources and/or the one or more diffuser elements to adjust diffuse and/or specular illumination projected onto the curved features of the UUT. In some embodiments, the system includes one or more darkfield light sources configured to project illumination onto second portions of the UUT to create a darkfield illumination profile. The system can capture data of the brightfield and/or darkfield illumination profiles and can thereby inspect portions of the UUT.

An optical inspection system includes at least one lighting module, a plurality of image-sensing units, and an editing and computing unit. Each lighting module is configured to generate a light beam for illuminating an object; each image-sensing unit is configured to capture an inspecting image of the object, wherein two adjacent inspecting images of the object has a repeated image; the editing and computing unit receiving the inspecting images captured by the image-sensing unit is configured to position the inspecting images in accordance with the repeated images and then recombinant the inspecting images for creating a full inspecting image.

A measuring apparatus has at least two radiation sources arranged to illuminate a measuring region of a surface of a sample, the at least two sources configured to illuminate the measuring region along at least two illumination beam paths at different angles of incidence relative to a surface normal of the surface, a detector device configured to detect at least two scattered radiation images of surface sections in the illuminated measuring region at a predetermined viewing angle relative to the surface normal of the surface, portions of the scattered radiation received by the detector device, which portions are formed in each case by the illumination in one of the illumination beam paths, in each case having a common spatial frequency, and an evaluation device configured to determine at least one roughness feature of the surface sections from the at least two scattered radiation images.

A surface inspection system (10) for inspecting the surface of sheet elements (4) present in an inspection area (20). The system includes an image evaluation unit (18), a camera (12), a dark-field illuminator (14) and a bright-field illuminator (16). The image evaluation unit (18) subtracts a line image captured under bright-field illumination conditions from a line image captured under dark-field illumination conditions. A method of identifying highly reflective surface areas on a sheet element (4) being moved through a sheet element processing machine, wherein first a line image (I.sub.16) of the surface of the sheet element (4) in the viewing area (20) is captured under bright-field illumination conditions and a line image (I.sub.14) of the same surface of the sheet element (4) in the viewing area (20) is captured under dark-field illumination conditions, and then the two line images (I.sub.14, I.sub.16) are compared, in particular subtracted from each other, wherein the surface is identified as being reflective if the difference (S.sub.n) between the two line images (I.sub.14, I.sub.16) is above a predefined threshold.

A system and method for multiple mode inspection of a sample. The system includes a radiation source, an objective lens, a bright field detection module, a dark field detection module and optics. The optics, when the system operates at a first mode, is configured to direct the input beam through a first opening, without substantially blocking any part of the input beam, towards a first region of the objective lens. The optics, when the system operates at a second mode, is configured to direct the input beam through a second opening, without substantially blocking any part of the input beam, towards a second region of the objective lens. The first region of the objective lens differs from the second region of the objective lens.

In a defect inspection device that irradiates a surface of a sample or a surface of a pattern chip with an illumination light shaped to extend in a first direction, and detects a scattered light generated from the surface of the sample or the surface of the pattern chip by the illumination light to detect a defect on the surface of the sample, the pattern chip has a dot pattern area in which multiple dots are arrayed in multiple rows and multiple columns, a minimum interval between the dots corresponding to the lines aligned in the first direction among the multiple dots arrayed in the dot pattern area in a second direction orthogonal to the first direction is smaller than a width of the illumination light, and a minimum interval between the multiple dots arrayed in the dot pattern area is larger than a resolution of the detection optical system.

A method and apparatus for the generation of hyperspectral images for an object consisting of a broad band light projection systems, a means of modulating the wavelength of the light, one or more sensors for observing the reflected light, one or more electronic means of synchronizing and extracting data from the sensor, one or more sensors for registering position, one or more calibration methods for rationalizing the data, and one or more algorithms for analyzing the data to produce the hyperspectral image.

A inspection system includes an illumination source to generate an illumination beam, focusing elements to direct the illumination beam to a sample, a detector, collection elements configured to direct radiation emanating from the sample to the detector, a detection mode control device to image the sample in two or more detection modes such that the detector generates two or more collection signals based on the two or more detection modes, and a controller. Radiation emanating from the sample includes at least radiation specularly reflected by the sample and radiation scattered by the sample. The controller determines defect scattering characteristics associated with radiation scattered by defects on the sample based on the two or more collection signals. The controller also classifies the one or more particles according to a set of predetermined defect classifications based on the one or more defect scattering characteristics.