A height measuring device includes a light source that emits light in a direction oblique to a top surface of a specimen, a slit that shapes the light from the light source to form a slit image on the specimen, an imaging element that detects reflected light reflected by the specimen, and an arithmetic unit. The arithmetic unit: identifies a slit image of the reflected light reflected by the top surface of the specimen from among a plurality of slit images based on respective positions of the plurality of slit images on a detection surface of the imaging element; and determines the height of the top surface of the specimen based on the position of the slit image of the reflected light reflected by the top surface of the specimen on the detection surface.

A carrier proximity mask and methods of assembling and using the carrier proximity mask may include providing a first carrier body, second carrier body, and set of one or more clamps. The first carrier body may have one or more openings formed as proximity masks to form structures on a first side of a substrate. The first and second carrier bodies may have one or more contact areas to align with one or more contact areas on a first and second sides of the substrate. The set of one or more clamps may clamp the substrate between the first carrier body and the second carrier body at contact areas to suspend work areas of the substrate between the first and second carrier bodies. The openings to define edges to convolve beams to form structures on the substrate.

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.

A charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a division/distribution processing unit to divide and distribute processed data into data groups each having an approximately equal data amount respectively, transmitting units to transmit the processed data of the groups such that processed data is transmitted in descending order with respect to order of writing processing for each data group and the groups are transmitted in parallel, memories to store the processed data of the groups such that each of the memories stores processed data of each different one of the groups, a writing order data output unit to output them, regardless of data group and in order of writing processing, and a writing unit to write a pattern on a target workpiece with a charged particle beam, based on the processed data output in the order of writing processing.

The vibration-suppressing mechanism includes: a first arcuate member that has an inner wall surface shaped along an outer wall of a column of a charged particle beam device; a second arcuate member that has an inner wall surface shaped along an outer wall of a column of the charged particle beam device and is connected to the first arcuate member to form an annular member surrounding the outer wall of the column of the charged particle beam device; a fastening member fastening both the first arcuate member and the second arcuate member together; a vibration sensor attached to the arcuate member; and an actuator that operates in response to an output of the vibration sensor, and can be detached by releasing connection obtained by a connecting member.

Thermionic cathodes and an electron emission apparatus are provided. The thermionic cathodes comprise perovskite material in crystal or sintered form. The thermionic cathodes provide strong electron emission at low operating temperatures.

Disclosed is a lithography process on a sample including at least one structure and covered by at least a lower layer of resist and a upper layer of resist the process including: using an optical device to image or determine, in reference to the optical device, a position of the selected structure and positions of markers integral with the sample; using an electron-beam device, imaging or determining the position of each marker in reference to the electron-beam device; deducing the position of the selected structure in reference to the electron-beam device; exposing to an electron beam the upper layer of resist above the position of the selected structure to remove all the thickness of the upper layer of resist above the position of the selected structure but none or only part of the thickness of the lower layer of resist above the position of the selected structure.

An electron beam lithography (Ebeam) method for a wafer having alignment and device layers with a design alignment. The Ebeam method includes executing an Ebeam scan of predefined length and resolution based on the design alignment over a pattern edge of the device layer, generating a signal from reflections of the Ebeam scan off the pattern edge, determining an offset of the device layer relative to the alignment layer from a comparison of the signal and the design alignment and applying the offset to the design alignment to obtain an actual measurement of Ebeam alignment.

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.

A sub-beam aperture array for forming a plurality of sub-beams from one or more charged particle beams. The sub-beam aperture array comprises one or more beam areas, each beam area comprising a plurality of sub-beam apertures arranged in a non-regular hexagonal pattern, the sub-beam apertures arranged so that, when projected in a first direction onto a line parallel to a second direction, the sub-beam apertures are uniformly spaced along the line, and wherein the first direction is different from the second direction. The system further comprises a beamlet aperture array with a plurality of beamlet apertures arranged in one or more groups. The beamlet aperture array is arranged to receive the sub-beams and form a plurality of beamlets at the locations of the beamlet apertures of the beamlet array.