Determination of the thicknesses and depths of subsurface nanostructures using a scanning electron microscope

The calculated ratios of the signal of backscattered electrons for multilayer nanostructures are derived depending on the energy of probing electrons and composition of multicomponent samples. From experimentally measured signals and calculated ratios, not only thicknesses but also, for the first time, depths of occurrence of local microheterogeneities of three-dimensional nanostructures were determined. The studies were carried out by a non-destructive method of detecting backscattered electrons in a scanning electron microscope.