Abstract

The Grating Division-of-Amplitude Photopolarimeter (G-DOAP) instrument exploits the multiple-beam-splitting, polarizing, and dispersive properties of diffraction gratings to simultaneously measure the complete polarization state across the incident light spectrum. Four diffracted orders are detected by two linear-array detectors to achieve time-resolved measurements of the Stokes parameters over the spectrum. These characteristics make G-DOAP particularly suited for in situ Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (SE) applications for the monitoring and control of thin film processes. The design and performance of a prototype instrument is presented. Precise SE measurements, to ± 0.1° in Δ and ± 0.04° in ψ, are demonstrated in the 550-950 nm wavelength range. Ellipsometric results on thin and thick films using the G-DOAP as a polarization analyzer are presented and the accuracy and precision of these results are discussed.

© 2000 Optical Society of America