CCD-based thermoreflectance microscopy: principles and applications

CCD-based thermoreflectance microscopy has emerged as a high resolution, non-contact imaging technique for thermal profiling and performance and reliability analysis of numerous electronic and optoelectronic devices at the micro-scale. This thermography technique, which is based on measuring the relative change in reflectivity of the device surface as a function of change in temperature, provides high-resolution thermal images that are useful for hot spot detection and failure analysis, mapping of temperature distribution, measurement of thermal transient, optical characterization of photonic devices and measurement of thermal conductivity in thin films. In this paper we review the basic physical principle behind thermoreflectance as a thermography tool, discuss the experimental setup, resolutions achieved, signal processing procedures and calibration techniques, and review the current applications of CCD-based thermoreflectance microscopy in various devices.