Validation and reliability of the 3D calibration evaluation algorithm for SPM

Abstract

Abstract Novel marker-based 3D standards, in the form of cascading step-slope pyramids, enable the calibration of three scaling factors and three coupling factors of scanning probe microscopes using only a single sample and a single measurement. They offer better convenience than conventional methods and are therefore increasingly applied. From a quality management perspective, it is of high importance to validate the evaluation algorithm of the 3D calibration strategy and analyze its error contribution. This paper proposes and develops a new software validation method based on both synthetic data and measurement data. Finally, results of our study are discussed, and the impact of the computational error on the measurement uncertainty is examined.