SBIR Phase I: Spectroscopy and imaging of irregular surfaces using confocal microscopy

这个小型企业创新研究第一阶段项目将支持一种共聚焦光学显微镜的开发，该显微镜具有二维地形剖面和多种光谱模式，可以在一个经济实惠的精密仪器中使用。该系统将对62亿美元的显微镜市场产生重大影响，近期市场渗透率超过5%，并具有显著的增长潜力。这项技术将跨越材料科学研究实验室的需求，从制造过程中的质量控制到供应链监控。整合地形测绘与一套多样化的光谱工具，使全面的材料分析在微米和亚微米尺度。用户将能够识别电子、光电和结构器件，以及涂层、管道、器件、磁盘和特种反射镜的特征和缺陷。组合材料和化学研究也将进一步通过一个单一的仪器获得几个光谱图的能力。社会影响包括组件和系统在设计和制造方面的实际改进。由于其紧凑的尺寸和低成本，显微镜可以在各级学校使用，为学生提供测量复杂物体属性的经验，并帮助他们为各种研究，开发和生产环境的职业生涯做好准备。这个项目的智力价值集中在将光学显微镜推进到光谱和地形复杂结构的表面分析领域。例如，微机电系统（MEMS）具有微米到毫米的特征，可以通过开发的仪器进行分析。关键的创新是精密谱图的发展及其与多种光谱询问方法的集成。这种分析创新的核心是用阵列探测器从样品上的每个点捕获二维光学图像，并将图像属性转换为垂直聚焦误差，然后在随后的光谱扫描中进行校正。然后，该仪器可以提供样品的拉曼，光致发光（PL）和地形表面（形态学）映射，具有衍射限制的分辨率。研究目标包括集成光学剖面与光谱扫描，从地形粗糙的样品中产生精确的二维光谱，以及图像捕获和分析软件的自动化。该仪器设计用于在几分钟内捕获具有数万个样品点的样品的表面形貌和光谱，垂直精度为10-50纳米。

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project will support the development of a confocal optical microscope with two-dimensional topographical profiling and multiple spectroscopic modes in a single, affordable precision instrument. The system will make a major impact in the $6.2 billion microscope market, with a near-term market penetration potential of over 5%, and significant growth potential. This technology will span the needs of materials science research laboratories through quality control in manufacturing to supply chain monitoring. Integration of topographic mapping with a diverse set of spectroscopic tools enables comprehensive materials analysis at the micron and submicron scale. Users will be able to identify features and defects in electronic, optoelectronic, and structural devices, as well as coatings, tubing, devices, disks, and specialty mirrors. Combinatorial materials and chemical research will also be furthered by the ability to acquire several spectroscopic maps with a single instrument. Societal impacts include practical improvements in the design and manufacture of components and systems. Because of its compact size and low cost, the microscope can be used in schools at all levels, providing students with experience in measuring properties of complex objects and helping prepare them for careers in various research, development, and production settings.The intellectual merit of this project centers on the advancement of optical microscopy into the realm of spectroscopic and surface analysis of topographically complex structures. Micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), for example, have micron-to-millimeter features that can be analyzed by the developed instrument. The key innovation is the development of precision profiling and its integration with multiple spectroscopic interrogation methods. This profiling innovation centers on the capture of two-dimensional optical images with an array detector from each point on a sample and the conversion of the image properties to a vertical focus error, which is then corrected in a subsequent spectroscopic scan. The instrument can then provide Raman, photoluminescence (PL), and topographic surface (morphology) mapping of a sample, with diffraction-limited resolution. Research objectives include integration of optical profiling with spectroscopic scanning to produce accurate two-dimensional spectra from topographically rough samples, and automation of the image capture and analysis software. The instrument is designed to capture the surface topography and spectrum of a sample with tens of thousands of sample points in a few minutes and with 10-50 nanometer vertical accuracy.