A method for operating a target processing system for processing a target (23) on a chuck (13), the method comprising providing at least a first chuck position mark (27) and a second chuck position mark (28) on the chuck (13); providing an alignment sensing system (17) arranged for detecting the first and second chuck position marks (27, 28), the alignment sensing system (17) comprising at least a first alignment sensor (61) and a second alignment sensor (62); moving the chuck (13) to a first position based on at least one measurement of the alignment sensing system (17); and measuring at least one value related to the first position of the chuck.

The invention relates to a method for determining a beamlet position in a charged particle multi-beamlet exposure apparatus. The apparatus is provided with a sensor comprising a conversion clement for converting charged particle energy into light and a light sensitive detector. The conversion element is provided with a sensor surface area provided with a 2D-pattern of beamlet blocking and non-blocking regions. The method comprises taking a plurality of measurements and determining the position of the beamlet with respect to the 2D-pattern on the basis of a 2D-image created by means of the measurements. Each measurement comprises exposing a feature onto a portion of the 2D-pattern with a beamlet, wherein the feature position differs for each measurement, receiving light transmitted through the non-blocking regions, converting the received light into a light intensity value, and assigning the light intensity value to the position at which the measurement was taken.

The present invention relates to a method for measuring a sample with a microscope, the method comprising scanning the sample using a focusing plane having a first angle with respect to a top surface of the sample and computing a confidence distance based on the first angle. The method further comprises selecting at least one among a plurality of alignment markers on the sample for performing a lateral alignment of the scanning step and/or for performing a lateral alignment of an output of the scanning step. In particular, the at least one alignment marker selected at the selecting step is chosen among the alignment markers placed within the confidence distance from an intersection of the focusing plane with the top surface.

In corner sections of first to fourth quadrants whose origin point is a center of an upper surface of a stage, three each of two-dimensional heads are provided. The three each of two-dimensional heads include one first head and two second heads. The stage is driven, while measuring a position of the stage using three first heads that face a two-dimensional grating of a scale plate provided above the stage from the four first heads, and during the driving, difference data of measurement values of the two second heads with respect to the first head in a measurement direction are taken in for head groups to which the three first heads belong, respectively, and using the difference data, grid errors are calibrated.

The present invention concerns a method of determining alignment of electron optical components in a charged particle apparatus. The charged particle apparatus comprising: an aperture array and a detector configured to detect charged particles corresponding to beamlets that pass through the corresponding apertures in the aperture array. The method comprises: scanning each beamlet in a plane of the aperture array over a portion of the aperture array in which a corresponding aperture of the aperture array is defined so that charged particles of each beamlet may pass through the corresponding aperture; detecting during the scan any charged particles corresponding to each beamlet that passes through the corresponding aperture; generating a detection pixel for each beamlet based on the detection of charged particles corresponding to each beamlet at intervals of the scan; and collecting information comprised in the detection pixel such as the intensity of charged particles.

The system described herein relates to a method for operating a beam apparatus, such as a particle beam apparatus or laser beam apparatus, a computer program product and a beam apparatus for carrying out the method, and to an object holder for an object that, for example, is able to be arranged in a particle beam apparatus. The method includes generating a marking on an object holder using a laser beam of a laser beam device and/or using a particle beam of the particle beam apparatus, where the particle beam includes charged particles, arranging an object on the object holder, moving the object holder, positioning the particle beam and/or the laser beam in relative fashion in relation to the object using the marking, and processing, imaging and/or analyzing the object using the particle beam and/or the laser beam.

In one embodiment, a multi charged-particle beam writing apparatus includes a plurality of blankers switching between ON and OFF state of a corresponding beam among multiple beams, a main deflector deflecting beams having been subjected to blanking deflection to a writing position of the beams in accordance with movement of a stage, a detector scanning a mark on the stage with each of the beams having been deflected by the main deflector and detecting a beam position from a change in intensity of reflected charged particles and a position of the stage, and a beam shape calculator switching an ON beam, scanning the mark with the ON beam, and calculating a shape of the multiple beams from a beam position. A shape of a deflection field of the main deflector is corrected by using a polynomial representing an amount of beam position shift that is dependent on a beam deflection position of the main deflector and then the mark is scanned with the ON beam. The polynomial is different for each ON beam.

A multi-charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a beam forming mechanism to form multi-charged-particle-beams, a block region forming circuit to form plural block regions from an irradiation region of the multi-charged-particle-beams formed by combining plural sub-regions each surrounded by a beam, being different from each other, and plural other beams adjacent to the beam in the multi-charged-particle-beams, and a writing mechanism to perform, using the multi-charged-particle-beams, multiple writing such that irradiation of each block region of the plural block regions is at least performed by any one of writing processing of the multiple writing, and such that each writing processing of the multiple writing is performed to write a writing region of a target object in a manner of covering the writing region without overlapping by, using one of the plural block regions, irradiation of the one of the plural block regions.

A system and method for optimizing a ribbon ion beam in a beam line implantation system is disclosed. The system includes a calibration sensor disposed in the beam line after the mass analyzer. The calibration sensor is able to measure both the total current of the ribbon ion beam, as well as provide information about its vertical position. Information from the calibration sensor can then be utilized by a controller to adjust various parameters to improve the density as well as the vertical position. In some embodiments, the calibration sensor may include a plurality of Faraday sensors, where, both the total current and the vertical position of the ion beam can be determined. Furthermore, the focus of the ion beam can be estimated based on the distribution of the current in the height direction.

In one embodiment, a charged particle beam drawing apparatus performs drawing by deflecting a charged particle beam with a deflector. A method for evaluating the apparatus includes making a shot of a first pattern, controlling a deflection amount by the deflector to move an applied position of the beam from the first pattern along a first direction to make a shot of a second pattern, controlling the deflection amount to move the applied position from the second pattern along the first direction to make a shot of a third pattern, controlling the deflection amount to move the applied position from the third pattern along a second direction opposite to the first direction to make a shot of a fourth pattern between the second pattern and the third pattern, calculating an interval between the second pattern and the fourth pattern, and comparing the calculated interval to a reference interval.