In OptiRE, a new database BBM Movies has been introduced. This database can store log files recorded by broad band monitoring devices. The new option BBM Movie Data of the Data menu allows you to analyze these files in order to study specifics of broad band monitoring procedures.

During the deposition of multilayer coatings with broadband monitoring (BBM) control it is often possible to save spectra at each rotation of the calotte. Typically measured spectra are saved as X/Y files in two-column format. Using X/Y import option it is possible to analyze separate spectra, but it is impossible to analyze the whole amount of BBM information, since typically during deposition of complicated coatings hundreds and thousands of X/Y files are saved.

We will call a Movie the whole set of X/Y files related to a deposition run with BBM monitoring.

Movies can be stored in BBM Movies database. Currently the only way to create a Movie file is to use Import BBM Movie option.

In order to use BBM Movie options you need to perform several simple steps:

Step 1. Create New movie and specify measurement characteristic (TS, TP, TA, RS, RP, RA, BRA, BRP, BRA), angle of incidence, wavelength range used to calculate discrepancies.

Step 4. Right-click menu provides useful operations:

• It is possible to delete the current scan from the Movie file;
• It is possible to delete all scans related to the current layer;
• It is possible to remove so-called drops.

Step 5. Load design, substrate, layer materials and observe data fitting:

View > Movie Fitting

Preview (in Edit) and Scan Fits (in Movie Fitting) tabs represent imported data in graphical form. Red vertical lines show the wavelength range (Min Wavelength and Max Wavelength values). It is possible to drag these lines with mouse and to interactively change the wavelength range.

Controls below the plots allows to perform the following operations (from left to right):

• Rewind
• Previous Layer
• Play Backward
• Previous Scan
• Stop
• Pause
• Next Scan
• Play Forward
• Next Layer
• End

Also it is possible to adjust playback speed and to change displayed scan with the slider.

Typically BBM Movie files include a huge amount of information. Please, be patient working with these files. Loading to memory may take a while. Also we recommend to use fast computers when working with BBM Movie data.