Plasma-etched depth measurement of films using the diffraction of a lamellar grating

An appropriately structured grating allows accurate measurement of the thickness of a thin film. We propose the use of this technique to measure the point-by-point evolution of plasma etching, and consequently the etching rate. We compare this real-time remote sensing technique with other available techniques. We note that this technique is suitable for measuring rapid fluctuations in plasma processes. We describe some experimental results concerning a photoresist film coated on a silicon wafer and predict the theoretical behaviour of other commonly occuring films.     

Selection of nanostructures for porous field‐emission display

Abstract— This paper describes the evaluation of nanostructures to be integrated into porous field‐emission displays (pFEDs), based on a multilayer of copper and polyimide, pierced by holes. The evaluation work is based on diode‐mode measurements performed with carbon nanotubes and nanostructured copper oxide samples obtained through wet chemical processes. A special characterization tool, based on the curve method, was used to obtain current vs. field characteristics in a repetitive and reproducible method. Histograms of threshold fields for 46 samples are presented, allowing for a comparison between different methods of nanostructure formation, which shows that carbon nanotubes yield a threshold field which is at least five times smaller than that for copper oxides.