MRS-5 Magnification Reference Standard
1,500x - 1,000,000x

• Electron Microscopy: SEM (secondary & backscattered electrons), TEM (for use with a bulk holder- the MRS-5 is conveniently sized at 2 x 2 x 0.5mm.
• Scanning Microscopies and Profilometry: STM, AFM, stylus and optical, etc. The pattern height is 0.1µm.
• Optical Microscopy: reflected, bright/dark field, differential contrast, and confocal.
• Chemical Mapping: EDS, WDS, micro/macro XRF, XPS, Auger & others. The pattern is fabricated using 100nm tungsten film over a thin SiO2 film over a silicon substrate.
• Resolution Testing: With a series of 2 bar targets (similar to the USAF 1953 patterns) ranging in size from 80nm to 3µm.
• Linearity Testing: With a 1µm2 pitch over 40 x 40µm.
• A Standard Ahead of Its Time: The MRS-5 represents a challenging next step. The nanotechnology sized patterns will be a good test of your imaging systems.
• Advanced optical microscopes now have submicrometer test patterns to measure resolution and linearity.
• Scanning electron microscopes have a pattern that will show significant differences between backscattered and secondary electron type I and type II images. Imaging the pattern will also tax their low accelerating voltage capabilities.
• Scanning probe microscopes have a pattern that is closely sized to the finest cantilever tips challenging their resolution ability.

Introduction

Introducing the MRS-5, the next level in a series of magnification calibration standards (the MRS-1, MRS-3 and MRS-4 are currently available). The MRS series of calibration standards are highly accepted pitch standards, with well over 1,000 being used in laboratories around the world including national laboratories in the US, UK and Germany. Industrial customers include Intel, AMD, and IBM. The MRS-5 is offered as a certified reference material (a traceable standard) or, optionally, without traceability. Also offered is a cleaning service and a recertification program, as required by international quality standards such as ISO, QS-9000 and ISO-17025.

Construction

• 2mm x 2mm x 0.5mm thick silicon die with thin SiO2 film then 100nm tungsten film. Pattern is etched into the tungsten film stopping at the SiO2 layer.
• Pitch is defined as a cycle, the distance of a bar plus space.

Traceability

The MRS-5 is traceable to the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in the U.K. NPL IS the counterpart to NIST in the U.S. There is a mutual recognition agreement between NIST and NPL recognizing each others' measurements.

Geometric design

It should be noted that some high resolution standards are traceable through optical diffraction methods to determine the pattern frequency which does not account for frequency variations in the pattern. We do it correctly, measuring and providing traceability to the individual pattern.

NIST= National Institute of Standards and Technology, USA
NPL= National Physical Laboratories, UK (counterpart of NIST)