Quantitative determination of surface potentials on integrated circuits (IC) at high frequencies with the scanning electron microscope (SEM)

An experimental set up combined with a commercial SEM is introduced, which enables the recording of stroboscopical, linearized and contrast isolated quantitative voltage contrast micrographs for frequencies up to 60MHz. This system allows the investigation of integrated circuits with a simultaneous voltage resolution of less than 100mV and a spatial resolution of 0.5 um for a maximum illuminated area of 2mm × 2mm at primary beam energies between 2-30keV.