Correction of PZT scanner errors using a phase compensation method in white-light phase-shifting interferometry

White-light phase-shifting interferometry (WLPSI) is widely used for obtaining surface profiles of inspection targets in liquid-crystal displays (LCD) and semiconductor manufacturing processes. Phase errors caused by irregular and nonlinear scanner movement are inevitable in WLPSI. Moreover, these errors affect the measurement stability. It is difficult to eliminate the mechanical and electrical delay of scanner movement entirely. A novel method, to the best of our knowledge, is proposed that consists of a scanner position tracking system and a phase correction algorithm called compensated peak detection and modified bucket algorithm. The proposed method is experimentally verified and outperforms the conventional phase corrections in both the measurement accuracy and the repeatability. (C) 2021 Optical Society of America