In the world of semiconductor wafers and high-tech flat-panel displays, microscopic perfection isn’t just a goal; it is a strict manufacturing requirement. Even a nanometer-sized warp, bump, or step can trigger a costly domino effect of failures downstream, leading to misaligned microchips, blurred laser focus, and broken component connections. To protect production yields, every single substrate must be inspected with absolute precision before moving forward.
However, measuring at this sub-microscopic scale introduces a hidden challenge: the testing equipment itself.
Why Z-axis motion quality is critical:
Any horizontal movement or rotation of the objective lens during a z-scan shifts the imaged area of the substrate. This creates topography artefacts that cannot be separated from real surface features in post-processing — making the purity of the z-motion as important as its range and resolution.
The ‘Ghost Flaw’ Problem
Advanced quality-control microscopes scan surfaces by moving an optical lens up and down on a motorized stage. If that stage wobbles, twists, or drifts sideways by even a fraction of a hair during the scan, it distorts the image. This creates a “ghost flaw” — a digital artifact on the topography map that looks exactly like a real surface defect but is actually just machine error.
While standard motorized stages are perfectly fine for regular microscopy, high-end semiconductor and display inspections require a level of straight-line stability that off-the-shelf parts simply cannot deliver.
The Solution: 7x More Precise Stability
To bridge this gap, piezosystem jena re-engineered its standard focus drive to create a specialized OEM MIPOS system tailored specifically for next-generation inspection platforms. By overhauling the internal mechanical joints and tightening manufacturing tolerances, they successfully locked down unwanted horizontal movement.
- Drastic Lateral Runout Reduction: Lateral runout was cut down from a standard 350 nm to a strict limit of 50 nm or less, which is a 7-fold improvement in stability.
- High Range & Resolution: Achieves a generous 500 µm vertical scanning range while maintaining an ultra-fine positioning resolution of 5 nm or less.
- 100% Guaranteed Performance: Every single unit is individually tested and qualified using laser-based tracking systems before it ships, ensuring documented, traceable accuracy.
