Replication and dimensional quality control of industrial nanoscale surfaces using calibrated AFM measurements and SEM image processing

Ultra-high precision manufacture of nanoscale structured polymer surfaces poses the highest challenges in terms of tooling and replication. This paper introduces new procedures for quality control of nickel stampers and polymer moulded discs for CD, DVD and HD-DVD manufacture: quantitative application of AFM to calibrate height, depth and pitch of sub-micrometer features and SEM image processing to detect replication accuracy in terms of number of replicated features. Surface replication is analyzed using a metrological approach: nano-features on nickel stampers and injection–compression moulded polycarbonate substrates are measured, measurement uncertainty calculated, replication fidelity assessed quantitatively, and dimensional tolerances at the nanometre scale verified.