Dektak Pro
Building on 55 years of surface measurement innovation and technology leadership, Dektak Pro™ sets a new standard for stylus profilometer performance. The system uniquely delivers the highest quality data with unrivaled ease of use.
This 11th-generation Dektak® system combines:
Only Dektak Pro provides the latest stylus profilometry advances and reliability needed to support your cutting-edge research and industrial applications well into the future.
Still Driving Stylus Profiling Innovation 55+ Years Later
Over the last five decades, Bruker's Dektak systems have led the industry in stylus profiling technology, achieving milestone improvements in resolution, stability, speed, and versatility. Now, Dektak systems are well-established as the gold standard of stylus profilers; when an accurate, trustworthy stylus profiler is needed, Dektak has long been the unquestioned solution.
Dektak Pro takes the next step forward in stylus profiling innovation, providing even more enhanced operability, reliability, and measurement accuracy to enhance and extend the qualities that make Dektak synonymous with stylus profiling.
Maximizing Repeatability and Accuracy
Dektak Pro delivers accurate, precise data with the highest resolution, lowest noise floor, and easiest tip exchange of any commercially available stylus profilometer. State-of-the art measurement and analysis technology maximizes repeatability and accuracy, making single-nanometer step height measurements and better than 4 Å repeatability possible.
Enhancing Throughput
Every step of the measurement and analysis process is accelerated with Dektak Pro. Direct-drive scan stage technology reduces time between scans, and 64-bit parallel processing in the Vision64® software enables fast data processing.
Additional speed and ease-of-use technological advancements in Dektak Pro:
- A new algorithm brings nearly the entire field of view into focus in the optical live image, making it easier to locate features of interest.
- New step height algorithms automate analysis routines, improve consistency, and minimize potential user error in step height calculations.
Providing Ultimate Versatility and Ease of Use
Suited to widely diverse applications
Dektak Pro addresses R&D, process development, and QA/QC present and future needs across a host of industrial and research applications, such as:
- Microelectronics
- Thick film coatings
- Biomaterials
Accurate and responsive in dynamic measurement scenarios
With Dektak Pro, one measurement head covers 5 nm–1 mm step heights and 0.03–15 mg loads (with N-Lite+ option) without recalibration. The low-inertia sensor (LIS 3) rapidly adapts to sudden changes in surface topography and maintains accuracy and responsiveness in dynamic measurement scenarios
Fast and easy stylus replacement
Dektak Pro’s unique self-aligning stylus assembly facilitates quick and easy stylus exchange while eliminating any potential mishaps during the process. Bruker offers the widest range of stylus sizes to accommodate nearly any application requirement.
Selecting the Configuration that Best Matches Your Application and Budget
Dektak Pro comes in several standard configurations with different stage sizes — up to 200 mm of full-sample access for wafers — and automated stage options to fit your unique needs and budget.
- Dektak Pro E or -S: Manual 100 mm XY stage with or without manual theta rotation
- Dektak Pro A: Automated 150 mm XY stage with automated 360° theta
- Dektak Pro A200: Automated encoded 200 mm XY stage with fine encoded automated 360° theta
Key Specifications
Our listed product specifications and offerings are always a starting point for a conversation with our experts to determine how our capabilities can meet your specific requirements and challenges.
| Measurement Technique: | Stylus profilometry (contact measurement) | Low Force Option: | N-Lite+ Low Force with 0.03 to 15 mg (optional) |
| Measurement Capability: | Two-dimensional surface profile measurements; Optional three-dimensional measurement/analyses | Stylus Options: | Stylus radius options from 50 nm to 25 μm; High Aspect Ratio (HAR) tips 200 μm x 20 μm; Custom tips available upon request |
| Sample Viewing: | Digital magnification, 0.275 to 2.2 mm vertical FOV | Sample Stage X/Y: | Manual 100 mm (4 in.) X/Y, manual leveling; Motorized 150 mm (6 in.) X/Y, manual leveling; Motorized encoded 200mm (8in.) X/Y |
| Stylus Sensor: | Low Inertia Sensor (LIS 3) | Sample R-Theta Stage: | Manual, continuous 360 degrees; Motorized, continuous 360 degrees |
| Stylus Force: | 1 to 15 mg with LIS 3 sensor; 0.03 to 15 mg range with optional N-Lite+ |
Frequently Asked Questions
Dektak Pro performs 2D surface profile measurements for applications including step height, thin-film thickness, surface roughness, and film stress. Optional 3D measurement and analysis capabilities support 3D mapping and more detailed surface characterization.
Dektak Pro accommodates wafers up to 200 mm (8 in) and samples up to 50 mm thick. It can be configured with a manual 100 mm XY stage or a motorized 150 mm XY stage, with manual or motorized continuous 360° theta rotation. The motorized configuration supports automated multi-site measurements.
Dektak Pro has a standard scan length of up to 55 mm. Scan stitching can extend the measurement length to 200 mm, enabling measurements across longer surface features or sample areas.
Yes. Dektak Pro provides a 1 mm vertical measurement range, allowing it to characterize both nanometer-scale and much taller surface features.
Dektak Pro uses Vision64 Operation and Analysis Software for measurement setup, data collection, and analysis. Capabilities include automated leveling, step detection, filters, analysis recipes, multi-scan operations, and 2D and 3D data analysis.
You can request a quote using our online form, or contact us directly.
More About Bruker's Dektak Stylus Profiler Systems
The sample is placed on a slider that slides over a highly polished flat glass block. The surface profile is measured by drawing the sample slider at constant speed underneath the stylus tip.
The vertical movement of the stylus tip is measured using LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) technology, which converts the stylus displacement into a highly precise and linear electrical signal.
Benchtop systems can accommodate small coupons up to full 8” wafers, while production models support large wafers and panels up to 12” size with encoded stages and multi‑site automation. The maximum sample height is 50 mm. Exact limits depend on the model, stage travel, and accessories.
For step height, typical vertical repeatability is on the order of a few angstroms to ~1 nm under controlled conditions, with sub‑nanometer repeatability possible on optimized setups and certified standards. Some key variables affecting accuracy and repeatability are tip condition/geometry, applied force, sample fixturing, vibration/thermal stability, and analysis procedures.
The standard stylus force of a Dektak stylus profiler ranges from 1 to 15 mg. For very delicate materials the force range can be extended downward to 0.03 mg (N-Lite force range).
The Dektak diamond stylus tips have a cono-spherical shape with radii ranging from 25 µm down to very sharp 50 nm. Often, Dektak stylus profilers are equipped with a stylus tip with 2 µm radius which is the recommended stylus radius for roughness measurements.
Sharper styli may be used if higher lateral resolution is required, while styli with greater radii may be useful on very sensitive surfaces.
Dektak styli are easily exchanged within a minute with the included stylus exchange tool. No tiny screwdrivers, Allen wrenches, or tweezers needed. No recalibration needed: Stylus exchange does not affect the calibration of the vertical scale, force scale or optical view.
Every Dektak stylus profiler supports recipe-based workflows for measurement and data analysis. In addition to measurement and automated analysis, Dektak recipes support the acquisition of sample information (e.g., wafer ID and part number), automatic saving of data files using template-generated filenames, and reporting of analysis results (e.g., step heights and roughness) to database tables.
Dektak stylus profilers with motorized XY-stage also allow to generate and run multi-site automation recipes, complete with wafer registration with alignment features (manual or by optical pattern recognition) and automated analysis and database reporting.
Selecting and Upgrading a Dektak Stylus Profiler
- The sub-nm vertical resolution of the LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) height sensor enables the measurement of heights, depths, and roughness down to single-nanometer levels and below.
- The LVDT sensor technology provides a large vertical range (up to 1 mm) and at the same time very low stylus forces (down to 0.03 mg) with a single sensor head.
- The vertical scale calibration shows excellent long-term stability.
- Moving the sample over a polished flat glass block provides a reference surface that is flat within a few nanometers over the full scan length of 55 mm.
- Dektak styli can be easily exchanged using the included stylus exchange tool without a need for recalibration of vertical range or stylus force.
Lateral resolution is limited by tip radius, so choosing an appropriate tip is important. Steep slopes and narrow features can be misrepresented if the tip cannot access them fully. Very soft or tacky films may require minimal force and specific tips; in some cases, an optical profilometer may bebetter suited.
Bruker provides applications consulting, troubleshooting, and best practice guidance, along with optional service plans for ongoing support, maintenance, and training.
Contact us to arrange a demonstration or submit samples for an evaluation tailored to your test geometry and materials.
Bruker offers upgrade options for users of legacy Dektak systems. Contact us to discuss your current system, measurement requirements, and available options for moving to a current Dektak platform.