The present disclosure relates to a gas field ion source having a gun housing, an electrically conductive gun can base attached to the gun housing, an inner tube mounted to the gun can base, the inner tube being made of an electrically isolating ceramic, an electrically conductive tip attached to the inner tube, an outer tube mounted to the gun can base, the outer tube being made of an electrically isolating ceramic, and an extractor electrode attached to the outer tube. The extractor electrode can have an opening for the passage of ions generated in proximity to the electrically conductive tip.

A workpiece processing system and method are disclosed for determining an alignment of a workpiece upon a workpiece support using a retractable sensor. A sensor moves in/out relative to an edge of the workpiece support to obtain positional data while the workpiece support is rotated. Based on the positional data, the alignment of the workpiece and workpiece support may be determined. After determining the alignment, the sensor may be retracted behind the workpiece support, such that the sensor is shielded by the workpiece support from an ion beam during ion implantation. Using a helical motion, an angle between the sensor and a support surface of the workpiece support may be maintained approximately constant during the measurement.

A method of depositing a layer on a semiconductor workpiece is disclosed. The method includes placing the semiconductor workpiece on a wafer chuck in a processing chamber, introducing a first precursor into the processing chamber, introducing a second precursor into the processing chamber, and while the second precursor is in the processing chamber, applying radiation to the semiconductor workpiece, whereby a surface of the semiconductor workpiece is heated. The method also includes, while the second precursor is in the processing chamber, applying a voltage bias to the wafer chuck.

A multi-beam particle microscope comprising a particle source configured to emit charged particles, and a multi-aperture arrangement configured to generate a first field of a multiplicity of charged first individual particle beams from the charged particles. A beam tube portion is arranged between the particle source and the multi-aperture arrangement. A condenser lens system with a magnetic lens can be arranged in the region of the beam tube portion. The beam tube portion comprises pure titanium or a titanium alloy, or the beam tube portion consists of pure titanium or a titanium alloy. The permeability coefficient of the pure titanium or of the titanium alloy is 1.0005 or less, such as 1.00005 or less. This can help make it possible to generate individual particle beams of better quality.

A focused ion beam system has a differentially-pumped vacuum unit and a focused ion beam column, comprising: a vacuum pad, of a porous material, with a suction surface exposed in a way that surrounds the outer edge of a substrate to be processed; a substrate support on which the substrate and vacuum pad are placed, and a vacuum pump for vacuum evacuation using the vacuum pad. The system provides an arrangement in which, while a head of the differentially-pumped vacuum unit partially falls out of the outer edge of the substrate, the suction surface allows an input of air evacuated from a region between the suction surface and the head, and the processing area on a substrate is expanded by allowing the processing with an ion beam to be performed even in the vicinity of the peripheral substrate surface without requiring a large vacuum chamber.

Methods for depositing films by atomic layer deposition using aminosilanes are provided.

A lens element of a charged particle system comprises an electrode having a central opening. The lens element is configured for functionally cooperating with an aperture array that is located directly adjacent said electrode, wherein the aperture array is configured for blocking 5 part of a charged particle beam passing through the central opening of said electrode. The electrode is configured to operate at a first electric potential and the aperture array is configured to operate at a second electric potential different from the first electric potential. The electrode and the aperture array together form an aberration correcting lens.

A method Includes: placing a semiconductor workpiece on a wafer chuck in a processing chamber; heating, by a heating element, the processing chamber; introducing a first precursor into the processing chamber; introducing a second precursor into the processing chamber; applying radiation, through a window, to a top surface of the semiconductor workpiece to heat the semiconductor workpiece; while the second precursor is in the processing chamber, applying a voltage bias to the wafer chuck, and wherein the voltage bias causes at least a portion of the second precursor to accelerate away from the window; reducing a pressure within the processing chamber; and replacing the window while the pressure in the processing chamber is reduced.

A charged particle beam system includes a sample chamber; a pre-evacuation chamber that is connected to the sample chamber; a first evacuation pump that has a first port connected to the sample chamber, and a second port connected to the pre-evacuation chamber; a second evacuation pump that is connected to the pre-evacuation chamber, an evacuation port, and the sample chamber; and a controller. The controller performs when a sample is introduced into the pre-evacuation chamber, a process of causing the second evacuation pump to evacuate the pre-evacuation chamber; a process of making a determination of whether a vacuum degree inside the pre-evacuation chamber has reached a first vacuum degree, based on power of the second evacuation pump; and a process of causing the first evacuation pump to evacuate the pre-evacuation chamber when the vacuum degree inside the pre-evacuation chamber is determined to have reached the first vacuum degree.

Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to deposition of high transparency, high-density carbon films for patterning applications. In one embodiment, a method of forming a carbon film on a substrate is provided. The method includes flowing a hydrocarbon-containing gas mixture into a process chamber having a substrate positioned on an electrostatic chuck, wherein the substrate is maintained at a temperature of about 10 C. to about 20 C. and a chamber pressure of about 0.5 mTorr to about 10 Torr, and generating a plasma by applying a first RF bias to the electrostatic chuck to deposit a diamond-like carbon film containing about 60% or greater hybridized sp.sup.3 atoms on the substrate, wherein the first RF bias is provided at a power of about 1800 Watts to about 2200 Watts and at a frequency of about 40 MHz to about 162 MHz.