Abstract

Ellipsometry is increasingly finding application to real time monitoring of thin film deposition.¹ This has been accelerated by the availability of commercial automated instruments which are specifically designed for vacuum system installation. While the ellipsometer can be quite accurate, it is affected by a number of effects arising from the nonideal morphology of most thin films. In particular, refractive index inhomogeneities and polarization effects result from scattering and form birefringence produced by columnar microstructure. Modeling of these effects demonstrates that form birefringence has the greatest effect on ellipsometric accuracy.²

© 1988 Optical Society of America