The present invention relates to an electron beam apparatus including a monochromator in which cylindrical electrostatic lenses for deflecting a path of an electron beam in the lenses are arranged symmetrically and an aperture including a plurality of selectable slits is disposed therebetween to be able to select an electron beam having a specified energy range. The electron beam apparatus has a monochromator having high resolution and excellent stability and maintainability by disposing slits and circular openings in one aperture part in parallel arrangement, thereby improving spatial resolution and energy resolution.

The invention is directed to mass spectrometer comprising an extraction system for secondary ions. The system comprises: an inner spherical deflecting sector; an outer spherical deflecting sector; a deflecting gap formed between the sectors; a housing in which the sectors are arranged. The deflecting sectors (42; 44) are biased at retarding gap (46). The system further comprises an exit disc electrode with an exit through hole centered about the exit axis, the intermediate electrode being biased at an intermediate voltage between the voltage of the housing and the average voltage of the sectors. The trajectories of the secondary ions become more parallel to the exit axis and become closer to the axis.

The invention is directed to mass spectrometer comprising an extraction system for secondary ions. The system comprises: an inner spherical deflecting sector; an outer spherical deflecting sector; a deflecting gap formed between the sectors; a housing in which the sectors are arranged. The deflecting sectors are biased at retarding potentials in order to reduce the energy of the ion beam entering the deflecting gap. The system further comprises an exit disc electrode which is biased at the midvoltage of the average voltage of the sectors, and two side plates both facing the spherical sectors, the side plates being biased in order to create an electrostatic field perpendicular to the exit axis.

Provided is an electrostatic deflection convergence-type energy analyzer having a wide acceptance angle and high two-dimensional convergence performance, is capable of imaging two-dimensional real-space images and emission angle distributions, and enables two-dimensional convergence and imaging at 90 deflection with respect to an incident direction. Outer electrodes and inner electrodes are disposed along the shapes of two rotation bodies formed on the inside and the outside for a common rotation axis. The inner-surface shape of the outer electrode has a tapered shape becoming smaller in diameter toward both ends. The outer-surface shape of the inner electrodes has a tapered shape becoming smaller in diameter toward both ends. An electron incident hole and exit hole are formed in each of the outer electrodes at both ends on the rotation axis. The outer and the inner electrodes have applied thereto voltages for accelerating and decelerating electrons in proportion to the energy of incident electrons.

In a first cross section along an electron ray that passes between an inner curved surface and an outer curved surface of a beam bender, the curvature of the surfaces are fixed, and the center of the curvature of the surfaces are set so as to match each other. In a second cross section perpendicular to the electron ray, the curvature of the surfaces are fixed, and the center of curvature of the surfaces are set so as to match each other. The radius of the curvature of the surface in the second cross section is set to be larger than that of the surface in the first cross section. The radius of curvature of the surface in the second cross section is set to be larger than that of the surface in the first cross section.

An apparatus may include an electrode assembly, the electrode assembly comprising a plurality of electrodes, arranged in a plurality of electrode pairs arranged to conduct an ion beam therethrough. A given electrode pair lies along a radius of an arc describing a nominal central ray trajectory, wherein a radius of a first electrode pair and an adjacent electrode pair define an angular spacing. The plurality of electrode pairs may define a plurality of angular spacings, wherein, in a first configuration, the plurality of angular spacings are not all equal. The apparatus may also include a power supply in communication with the EM, the power supply configured to independently supply voltage to the plurality of electrodes.

A method of operating a Post Column Filter (PCF) in a Scanning/Transmission Electron Microscope, and a Post Column Filter configured to operate according to the method. In an embodiment, the method includes receiving, at an entrance plane, an incoming beam of electrons; dispersing, by an energy dispersive element, the incoming beam of electrons into an energy dispersed beam of electrons; disposing a first plurality of quadrupoles between the entrance plane and a slit plane; operating the PCF in an EELS mode; and operating the PCF in an EFTEM mode. Operating the PCF in an EELS mode includes exciting one or more quadrupoles of the first plurality of quadrupoles at a first excitation level, wherein the first excitation level does not enlarge the energy dispersion of the energy dispersed beam of electrons; and forming an image of the energy dispersed beam of electrons on the image plane, the image being an EELS spectrum. Operating the PCF in the EFTEM mode includes including a slit at the slit plane in an optical path; exciting one or more quadrupoles of the first plurality of quadrupoles at a second excitation level, the second excitation level different from the first excitation level; forming an energy dispersed focus of the energy dispersed beam of electrons on the slit at the slit plane; and enlarging the energy dispersion of the energy dispersed beam of electrons caused by the energy dispersive element based on the one or more first plurality quadrupoles excited at the second excitation level.

An electrostatic analyzer includes a cylindrical body having an inner cylinder and an outer cylinder that are coaxial with one another along a longitudinal axis of the cylindrical body. An inner cylindrical electrode is positioned on an exterior face of the inner cylinder. An outer cylindrical electrode is positioned on an interior face of the outer cylinder. A first azimuthal electrode positioned on a face of a first azimuthal plane that passes through the longitudinal axis. A second azimuthal electrode is positioned on a face of a second azimuthal plane that passes through the longitudinal axis. A first end electrode is positioned on a first end face of the cylindrical body. A second end electrode is positioned on a second end face of the cylindrical body.

An apparatus may include an electrode assembly, the electrode assembly comprising a plurality of electrodes, arranged in a plurality of electrode pairs arranged to conduct an ion beam therethrough. A given electrode pair lies along a radius of an arc describing a nominal central ray trajectory, wherein a radius of a first electrode pair and an adjacent electrode pair define an angular spacing. The plurality of electrode pairs may define a plurality of angular spacings, wherein, in a first configuration, the plurality of angular spacings are not all equal. The apparatus may also include a power supply in communication with the EM, the power supply configured to independently supply voltage to the plurality of electrodes.

A retarding potential type energy analyzer including a front grid electrode, reference grid electrode and rear grid electrode sequentially arranged, with a predetermined amount of potential difference given between the reference grid electrode and the front grid electrode to form an upward potential gradient as well as a potential difference given between the reference grid electrode and the rear grid electrode to form a downward potential gradient, the grid electrodes are arranged so that the distance between the reference grid electrode and the rear grid electrode is shorter than the distance between the reference grid electrode and the front grid electrode, or the potential difference between the reference grid electrode and the rear grid electrode is made to be greater than the potential difference between the reference grid electrode and the front grid electrode.