Nanosheet In-Line Metrology (GAA) Patent Snapshot 2026
The nanosheet in-line metrology patent space covering gate-all-around (GAA) transistor measurement is extremely nascent, with all known filings concentrated in a single applicant — Onto Innovation Inc — whose 4 patent families appeared in 2023. This near-total concentration signals both a first-mover advantage for Onto Innovation and an exceptionally open field for rival toolmakers and logic foundries to establish positions.
Onto Innovation holds every identified family — a maximally concentrated, early-stage Snapshot
Onto Innovation Inc accounts for all 4 patent families identified in the nanosheet GAA in-line metrology corpus, placing it alone at the top of the applicant ranking with no current challengers on record.
The top-five filers’ share of the ranked applicants visible in this query is 100%, reflecting a single-applicant field rather than a distributed competitive cluster — an unusually extreme concentration that is rare even in emerging technology sub-domains.
| # | Applicant | Patent families | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Onto Innovation Inc | 4 |
Onto Innovation’s undisputed position implies that any competing metrology tool vendor or foundry seeking freedom-to-operate or differentiated IP in this domain will need to either design around existing claims or carve entirely new measurement approaches.
Because patent applications typically publish 18–24 months after filing, activity filed in 2024–2025 is likely under-represented; the evidence snapshot should be re-evaluated as those publications emerge. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
All activity concentrated in a single filing year; optical and dimensional measurement dominate the technology mix
The annual filing trend and IPC branch breakdown together reveal both the timing and the technical character of this nascent corpus.
Annual filing trend
All 4 patent families were filed in 2023; no filings appear in any prior year back to 2017, and the zeroes in 2024–2026 reflect publication lag rather than inactivity. The 2023 cluster marks the moment Onto Innovation moved to protect GAA nanosheet metrology IP, likely timed to align with industry transition toward gate-all-around nodes.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
Material analysis and testing (G01N) is the visible IPC branch, covering all 4 families, while dimensional measurement (G01B) appears in 3 families and AI-based computing (G06N) in 1 — indicating that optical/spectroscopic characterization is the primary technical route, with machine-learning inference as a secondary capability.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Metrology solutions for complex structures of inte…
Complex structures, such as gate-all-around (GAA) field effect transistor or high-aspect ratio (HAR) Channel hole etch, etc., in semiconductor devices are measured using a combination of physical modeling and machine learning modeling. Metrology signals collected at different manufacturing process steps, e.g., pre-process step and post-process step of the… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Metrology solutions for complex structures of inte… | 6 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
Assignee snapshot from the current evidence set
The applicants below are visible in this query result. Because the evidence set is relatively small, read this section as a directional snapshot rather than a full competitive ranking.
Onto Innovation Inc
Onto Innovation holds all 4 patent families in the corpus, with a technology emphasis on material analysis and testing (G01N 21, covering all 4 families), dimensional measurement (G01B 11, 3 families), and AI-based computing (G06N 20, 1 family). Its momentum is flagged as a new entrant in the GAA metrology sub-domain, consistent with having established its full position in a single 2023 filing cohort. The company’s focus on optical and AI-augmented metrology aligns with its broader product strategy for advanced-node process control.
families: 4No challenger identified
No second-ranked applicant appears in the current corpus. Any organization developing nanosheet GAA measurement capability — including competing metrology OEMs, IDMs, or foundries — has either not yet filed, not yet published, or falls outside the current search scope. This gap is itself a strategic signal.
families: N/AFrequently asked questions
The current corpus contains 4 patent families, all assigned to Onto Innovation Inc and all filed in 2023. This is an exceptionally small and concentrated dataset, consistent with a newly emerging sub-domain.
Onto Innovation Inc is the sole identified applicant in the current corpus, holding all 4 patent families. No other organization appears in the applicant ranking at this time.
The existing families cluster around material analysis and testing (G01N), dimensional measurement (G01B), and AI-based computing (G06N). Optical and scatterometry-type measurement is the primary technical route, with machine-learning inference as a secondary feature in one family.
Europe (EPO) is the lead jurisdiction, followed by the United States and WIPO (PCT). The PCT filing indicates potential for future national-phase entries into additional jurisdictions not yet visible in the record.
No co-applicant or joint-filing activity is present in the current corpus. The field is currently a sole-applicant domain, and collaborative filings between toolmakers and foundries have not yet appeared in the public record.
Based on the current IPC coverage, adjacent branches such as H01L (semiconductor process control and in-fab integration) and G01R (electrical parametric metrology for nanosheet structures) are absent from the existing corpus and represent technically relevant but unoccupied areas. These observations are drawn from IPC sparsity and plausible technical relevance, not validated commercial opportunities.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
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