METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR THIN FILM THICKNESS MAPPING

An apparatus and method for mapping film thickness of textured polycrystalline thin films. Multiple sample films of known thicknesses are provided, and each is irradiated by x-ray at a measurement point to generate a diffraction image that captures a plurality of diffraction arcs. Texture information (i.e., pole densities) of each sample film is calculated based on multiple incomplete pole figures collected from the diffraction image and used to correct the x-ray diffraction intensities obtained from such sample film. Corrected and integrated diffraction intensities of the sample films are then correlated to respective known film thicknesses of such films, and the correlation so determined can be used to map the film thickness of a textured polycrystalline thin film of unknown thickness, based on the corrected and integrated diffraction intensity calculated for such thin film.