The present invention provides a method and substrate examining device that sequentially and automatically measures at least the thickness and the internal stress of the thin film at a predetermined measurement point on the surface of every manufactured semiconductor substrate to perform quality control on each substrate, and reliably recognizes the cause of defects to improve productivity. The examining device and method accurately analyzes the correlation between film thickness and stress to establish the manufacturing processes necessary for manufacturing a semiconductor substrate of higher performance, and measures the distribution of a physical quantity such as internal stress, index of refraction, and composition of the semiconductor substrate in the film thickness direction, without being influenced by change in ambient environmental temperature thereby further improving examination precision.