Abstract

A previously presented method of measuring simultaneously both the complex refractive index and thickness of a thin film is shown to work successfully on a variety of thin films. The reliability of the optical constants is shown both by comparing their repeatability with several different methods and by comparison of the calculated and measured reflectance from the film as a function of angle of incidence. The computer-inversion method is used to show that a thin inhomogeneous film can usually be approximated by one homogeneous film. A method of determining the anisotropy of a thin film is presented that compares the complex index determined from perpendicular polarization measurements to that determined from parallel polarization measurements.

© 1977 Optical Society of America

Optical characterization of thin films: Theory

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