Project: Pushing boundaries of nano-dimensional metrology by light

Acronym	POLight (Reference Number: 20FUN02)
Duration	01/09/2021 - 31/08/2024
Project Topic	To boost attention toward the innovation potential of Nanotechnologies, Micro-Nanoelectronics, Photonics and Advanced materials, the European Commission branded these sectors as Key Enabling Technologies (KETs). The objective is to refocus capacity from medium-technology sectors towards opportunities in some of Europe’s most advanced industries and institutes. By 2015, Europe’s industries contributed just under a quarter of KETs-based exports, a share unchanged over the preceding decade. By contrast, investment in East-Asia generated rapid growth, gaining almost two-thirds of the world’s export markets and almost half the total number of KET patents. Developing these four KETs requires manipulation of matter at the nanoscale, where optical measurement is critical, such as defect detection of semiconductors, photonics and nano-electronics. However, the current approach of using shorter wavelength light to measure each generation of increasingly small devices is reaching a practical limit of corresponding reduced penetration depth. For example, solid-state device memory contains multiple layers a few microns thick, inaccessible by extreme UV-light, that barely penetrates 0.2-micron depth. This project builds on the BeCOMe project that developed optical measurement techniques for nanoscale structures. Further methods will be developed to measure lateral features sized below 10 nm using far-field detection; diffraction-based methods; and by multiple scattering or linear structured-illumination microscopy. Other potential imaging methods will be developed, including quantum methods, to deliver spatial resolutions at 10 nm and penetration depth in the micro-metre range. New optical metrology systems will unlock innovation opportunities for European industries and institutes, potentially offering competitive advantages in high-growth-potential global markets.
Website	visit project website
Network	EMPIR
Call	EMPIR Call 2020

Project partner

Number	Name	Role	Country
1	Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt	Coordinator	Germany
2	Cesky Metrologicky Institut	Partner	Czech Republic
3	Dansk Fundamental Metrologi A/S	Partner	Denmark
4	Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica	Partner	Italy
5	Federale Overheidsdienst Economie, KMO, Middenstand en Energie	Partner	Belgium
6	VSL B.V.	Partner	Netherlands
7	Danmarks Tekniske Universitet	Partner	Denmark
8	Energiatudományi Kutatóközpont	Partner	Hungary
9	Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena	Partner	Germany
10	Fundacio Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques	Partner	Spain
11	JCMwave GmbH	Partner	Germany
12	Swansea University	Partner	United Kingdom
13	Technische Universiteit Delft	Partner	Netherlands
14	Technische Universitaet Braunschweig	Partner	Germany
15	Università degli Studi di Torino	Partner	Italy