In a charged-particle lithography apparatus, during writing a desired pattern, the duration of exposure slots is adapted to compensate for fluctuations of the particle beam. In the writing process the aperture images are mutually overlapping on the target so each pixel is exposed through a number of aperture images overlapping at the respective pixel, which results in an exposure of the respective pixel through an effective pixel exposure time, i.e., the sum of durations of contributing exposure slots, and the exposure slot durations are adjusted by: (i) determining a desired duration of the effective pixel exposure time for the pixels, as a function of the time of exposure of the pixels, (ii) determining contributing exposure slots for the pixels, (iii) calculating durations for the contributing exposure slots thus determined such that the sum of the durations over said contributing exposure slots is an actual effective exposure time which approximates said desired duration of the effective pixel exposure time. The durations in step (iii) are calculated in accordance with a predetermined set of allowed durations, wherein at least one of the durations thus calculated is different from the other durations selected for said set of exposure slots.

A multi-charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a movable stage to mount a substrate thereon, a shot data generation circuit to generate shot data of each shot of multiple charged particle beams, a shift amount calculation circuit to calculate a shift amount for collectively correcting positions of all of the multiple charged particle beams of the k-th shot, based on parameters related to at least the (k+1)th and subsequent shots (k being a natural number) of the multiple charged particle beams, and a writing mechanism including a deflector for deflecting the multiple charged particle beams, and to perform the k-th shot onto the substrate with the multiple charged particle beams while shifting the all of the multiple charged particle beams of the k-th shot by collective deflection according to the shift amount.

A multi-beam writing method includes acquiring a plurality of deflection coordinates for deflecting a beam to each of a plurality of pixels which are in each beam pitch region of a plurality of beam pitch regions, a number of pixels to be exposed by a beam in the each beam pitch region during each of tracking control period performed such that the multiple beams collectively follow a movement of a stage, and a deflection movement amount of the multiple beams at a time of tracking reset for resetting a tracking starting position after each of the tracking control period has passed; and generating a deflection sequence defined using the plurality of deflection coordinates, the number of pixels to be exposed during each of the tracking control period, and the deflection movement amount of the multiple beams at the time of tracking reset.

In one embodiment, a multi charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a measurement unit measuring a first beam shape of a multi-beam based on a beam current of each beam of the multi-beam or an intensity of charged particles reflected from a reflection mark provided on a stage, an amounts of adjustment calculator calculating amounts of adjustment of a reduction ratio and a rotation angle of the multi-beam based on the first beam shape, a correction map generation unit generating a first correction map in which an amount of displacement is defined that is obtained for each beam of the multi-beam based on a difference between a beam shape based on the amounts of adjustment and the first beam shape, a writing data processor generating shot data in which an amount of irradiation with each beam of the multi-beam is defined by converting writing data in which information regarding a graphic pattern to be written is defined, and correcting the amount of irradiation with each beam defined in the shot data based on the first correction map, and a controller controlling the reduction ratio and rotation angle of the multi-beam based on the amounts of adjustment.

A Procedural EBL system implements a user-provided oracle function (e.g., associated with a specific pattern) to generate control instructions for electron beam drive electronics in an on-demand basis. A control system may invoke the oracle function to query the pattern at individual point locations (e.g., individual x,y locations), and/or it may query the pattern over an area corresponding to a current field being addressed by the beam and stage positioner, for example. This Procedural EBL configuration manages control and pattern generation so that the low-level drive electronics and beam column may remain unchanged, allowing it to leverage existing EBL technologies.

In one embodiment, a settling time determination method includes deflecting a charged particle beam by applying a voltage outputted from an amplifier to a first deflector while changing a deflection settling time, and writing an evaluation pattern, measuring a position of the evaluation pattern, and determining a position displacement amount of the measured position from a design position, performing fitting of the position displacement amount for the deflection settling time on a first output waveform of the amplifier, and determining a deflection settling time in which the position displacement amount is within a predetermined range.

A multiple charged particle writing method includes performing a tracking operation by shifting the main deflection position of multiple beams using charged particle beams in the direction of stage movement so that the main deflection position of the multiple beams follows the stage movement while a predetermined number of beam shots of the multiple beams are performed, and shifting the sub deflection position of the multiple beams so that each beam of the multiple beams straddles rectangular regions among plural rectangular regions obtained by dividing a writing region of a target object into meshes by the pitch size between beams of the multiple beams, and the each beam is applied to a different position in each of the rectangular regions straddled, and applying a predetermined number of shots per beam using plural beams in the multiple beams to each of the plural rectangular regions, during the tracking operation.

In one embodiment, a drawing apparatus includes a drawer configured to draw a pattern on a plurality of regions with a beam, an operator configured to transfer a data for irradiating the plurality of regions with the beam, and a controller configured to control the drawing on the plurality of regions with the drawer, based on the data for the plurality of regions transferred from the operator. When performing the drawing on a first region and then the drawing on a second region, the controller corrects a state of the drawer between completion of drawing on the first region and completion of transfer of the data for the second region or the controller delays the completion of drawing on the first region to shorten time from the completion of drawing on the first region to the completion of transfer of the data for the second region.

According to one aspect of the present invention, a multiple charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a subtraction processing circuit configured to subtract a corresponding shared dose from a dose of each of peripheral beams of a defect beam where control of a dose of a beam is disabled and the dose to be irradiated is excessive among the multiple charged particle beams, such that the same dose as an excess dose by the defect beam is shared by the peripheral beams of the defect beam; and a writing mechanism including a stage mounting a target object and a deflector deflecting the multiple charged particle beams and configured to write a pattern on the target object, using the multiple charged particle beams of doses in which the same dose as the excess dose of the defect beam is shared and is subtracted from the doses of the peripheral beams.

An electron beam irradiation method includes calculating a charge amount distribution in the case where a substrate is irradiated with an electron beam, by using an index indicating complexity of a pattern to be formed on the substrate, calculating a positional deviation amount of an irradiation pattern to be formed due to irradiation with the electron beam, by using the charge amount distribution having been calculated, correcting an irradiation position by using the positional deviation amount having been calculated, and applying an electron beam to the irradiation position having been corrected.