An improved apparatus and method for enhancing an image, and more particularly an apparatus and method for enhancing an image through cross-talk cancellation in a multiple charged-particle beam inspection are disclosed. An improved method for enhancing an image includes acquiring a first image signal of a plurality of image signals from a detector of a multi-beam inspection system. The first image signal corresponds to a detected signal from a first region of the detector on which electrons of a first secondary electron beam and of a second secondary electron beam are incident. The method includes reducing, from the first image signal, cross-talk contamination originating from the second secondary electron beam using a relationship between the first image signal and beam intensities associated with the first secondary electron beam and the second secondary electron beam. The method further includes generating a first image corresponding to first secondary electron beam after reduction.

The present invention relates to a pattern edge detection method applicable to a semiconductor inspection apparatus that performs a pattern inspection using pattern design data. This method includes: generating an image of a pattern; detecting an edge of the pattern on the image based on a reference pattern generated from design data for the pattern; repeating generating of an image of a pattern and detecting of an edge of the pattern on the image to produce training-data candidates including a plurality of images and corresponding pattern edges; determining training data by removing pattern edges and corresponding images from the training-data candidates, the pattern edges to be removed being pattern edges satisfying a predetermined disqualification condition; producing an edge detection model by machine learning using the training data; generating an image of other pattern; and detecting an edge of the other pattern on the image using the edge detection model.

The present application discloses a coal consumption online measuring system, which belongs to the field of analysis and measurement technology. The system includes an equivalent atomic number measuring device, a flow rate measuring device, an ash content measuring device, a volatile content measuring device, a moisture content measuring device and a data acquisition and processing device. The data acquisition and processing device iteratively corrects the measured real-time density, real-time ash content, real-time moisture content and/or real-time volatile content; and the data acquisition and processing device performs online calculation of the coal consumption according to a real-time volume flow rate and the iteratively-corrected real-time density, real-time ash content, real-time moisture content and real-time volatile content. The coal consumption online measuring system is an independent and complete working system which only uses the measured data from the coal consumption online measuring system itself to obtain the final required results.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a defect inspection device with which it is possible to determine a defect candidate position more accurately than before, even when design data cannot be obtained or are difficult to be utilized sufficiently. The present invention solves the problem by: setting an appropriate reference die or reference chip over a wafer to be inspected; setting, with respect to each of swath channel die images obtained by dividing a reference die swath image into a plurality of portions and detecting the portions, one or more reference patterns; correcting a position error of a swath image obtained from another die to be inspected, using the reference pattern for each swath channel image; and performing defect detection using the corrected swath channel image (FIG. 5B).

With respect to a charged particle beam apparatus, provided is a technology capable of preventing a deterioration in image quality of a captured image. The charged particle beam apparatus includes an imaging device that irradiates a sample with a charged particle beam and forms an image from information of the sample and a computer. The computer stores each of images (scanned images) obtained by scanning the same area multiple times, classifies each of images into an image including a deteriorated image and an image not including the deteriorated image, and stores a target image obtained by performing image integration from the image not including the deteriorated image. The charged particle beam apparatus includes a database that stores data such as information obtained from an imaging device including the scanned image, classification results, and the target image. The charged particle beam apparatus obtains a target image having a high S/N and sharpness in which random noise is suppressed and a deterioration in image quality is prevented by performing the image integration on the scanned image that does not include the selected deteriorated image among the scanned images.

Methods for determining metrology sites for products includes detecting corresponding objects in measurement data of one or more product samples, and aligning the detected objects are aligned. The methods also include analyzing the aligned objects, and determining metrology sites based on the analysis. Devices use such methods to determine metrology sites for products.

An exploration method starts from cuttings associated with sampling intervals and well data for a well in a subsurface formation. The cuttings are prepared and analyzed to extract textural and chemical/mineralogical data for plural fragments in each sample that is made of the cuttings in one sampling interval. The method then includes matching lithotypes of rock defined according to the textural and chemical/mineralogical data for each fragment with segments of the well data in the corresponding sampling interval to obtain correspondences between the lithotypes and depth ranges. The correspondences between the lithotypes and the depth ranges may be used as constraints for seismic data inversion.

A computing unit generates a to-be-used-in-computation netlist on the basis of a to-be-used-in-calculation device model corresponding to a correction sample, estimates a first application result, on the basis of the to-be-used-in-computation netlist and an optical condition, when a charged particle beam is applied to the correction sample under the optical condition, compares the first application result and a second application result based on a detection signal when the charged particle beam is applied to the correction sample under the optical condition, and corrects the optical condition when the first application result and the second application result differ from each other.

A measuring method for a liquid metal slide bearing is disclosed. In at least one embodiment, the measuring method includes providing a liquid metal slide bearing to be measured, the liquid metal slide bearing including two bearing parts with liquid metal being arranged between the two bearing parts. The method further includes measuring inductance, or a variable associated with the inductance, of the liquid metal slide bearing; and determining a quantity of liquid metal in the liquid metal slide bearing based upon the inductance, or the variable associated with the inductance, measured. Furthermore, a corresponding measuring device, a liquid metal slide bearing and an x-ray tube and an apparatus are disclosed.

An object of the invention is to easily acquire images of a position corresponding among a plurality of sample sections in an imaging device that acquires images of the plurality of sample sections. The imaging device according to the invention generates a cursor for specifying a first observation region and a contour portion of a first sample section, and superimposes the cursor on a contour portion of a second sample section so as to calculate coordinates of a second observation region of the second sample section.