Improvement of geometrical measurements from 3D-SEM reconstructions

The quantification of 3D geometry at the nanometric scale is a major metrological challenge. In this work geometrical measurements on cylindrical items obtained with a 3D-SEM were investigated. Two items were measured: a wire gauge having a 0.25 mm nominal diameter and a hypodermic needle having an external diameter of 0.26mm. A series of measurements were performed to determine the accuracy of 3D reconstructions obtained using stereo-photogrammetry methods, finding a procedure to determine the optimum number of rotations of the object for an acceptable measuring uncertainty. It was determined that the diameter estimation performed using the 3D-SEM leads to an overestimation of approx. 7% compared to the reference values obtained using a 1-D length measuring machine. Standard deviation of SEM measurements performed on the wire gauge is approx. 1.5 times lower than the one performed on the hypodermic needle.