This charged particle beam device is provided with: a plurality of detectors for detecting secondary particles, the detectors being disposed in a symmetrical manner around the optical axis of a primary charged particle beam closer to the charged particle source side than an objective lens; electrodes for forming an electric field oriented in directions corresponding to each of the plurality of detectors, the electrodes being provided on the travel routes of secondary particles from a sample to the detectors; and a control power supply for applying a voltage to the electrodes. Adjusting the voltage applied to each of the electrodes makes it possible to detect, upon deflecting, the secondary particles, and to control the range of azimuths of the secondary particles to be detected.

A method of generating a result image of an object using a particle beam system includes recording multiple primary images of a region of the object using the particle beam system. Recording of each of the primary images includes scanning the primary particle beam along a scan direction across the region and detecting secondary particles generated thereby. The scan directions used for recording at least one pair of two of the primary images differ at least by a first threshold value of at least 10. The method also includes generating, based on the multiple primary images, the result image representing the region of the object.

A multi-beam apparatus for observing a sample with high resolution and high throughput and in flexibly varying observing conditions is proposed. The apparatus uses a movable collimating lens to flexibly vary the currents of the plural probe spots without influencing the intervals thereof, a new source-conversion unit to form the plural images of the single electron source and compensate off-axis aberrations of the plural probe spots with respect to observing conditions, and a pre-beamlet-forming means to reduce the strong Coulomb effect due to the primary-electron beam.

A low voltage scanning electron microscope is disclosed, which includes: an electron source configured to generate an electron beam; an electron beam accelerator configured to accelerate the electron beam; a compound objective lens configured to converge the electron beams accelerated by the electron beam accelerator; a deflection device arranged between the inner wall of the magnetic lens and the optical axis of the electron beam and configured to deflect the electron beam; a detection device comprising a first sub-detection device for receiving secondary and backscattered electrons from the specimen, a second sub-detection device for receiving backscattered electrons, and a control device for changing the trajectories of the secondary electrons and the backscattered electrons; an electrostatic lens comprising the second sub-detection device, a specimen stage, and a control electrode for reducing the moving speed of the electron beam and changing the moving directions of the secondary and the backscattered electrons.

A defect observation device detects a defect with high accuracy regardless of a defect size. One imaging configuration for observing an observation target on a sample is selected from an optical microscope, an optical microscope, and an electron microscope, and an imaging condition of the selected imaging configuration is controlled.

There is provided a charged particle beam device which includes a charged particle beam source, a charged particle beam optical system that irradiates a sample with a charged particle beam from the charged particle beam source, a detector that detects a secondary signal generated from the sample by irradiation with the charged particle beam, and an image processing unit that executes integration processing of image data obtained from the secondary signal and outputting an integrated image, and in which the image processing unit executes a normalization integration computation of outputting an integrated image in which a luminance value of the integrated image is always 1 in an integration process.

The present invention provides apparatuses to inspect small particles on the surface of a sample such as wafer and mask. The apparatuses provide both high detection efficiency and high throughput by forming Dark-field BSE images. The apparatuses can additionally inspect physical and electrical defects on the sample surface by form SE images and Bright-field BSE images simultaneously. The apparatuses can be designed to do single-beam or even multiple single-beam inspection for achieving a high throughput.

This charged particle beam device is provided with: a plurality of detectors for detecting secondary particles, the detectors being disposed in a symmetrical manner around the optical axis of a primary charged particle beam closer to the charged particle source side than an objective lens; electrodes for forming an electric field oriented in directions corresponding to each of the plurality of detectors, the electrodes being provided on the travel routes of secondary particles from a sample to the detectors; and a control power supply for applying a voltage to the electrodes. Adjusting the voltage applied to each of the electrodes makes it possible to detect, upon deflecting, the secondary particles, and to control the range of azimuths of the secondary particles to be detected.

A low voltage scanning electron microscope is disclosed, which includes: an electron source configured to generate an electron beam; an electron beam accelerator configured to accelerate the electron beam; a compound objective lens configured to converge the electron beams accelerated by the electron beam accelerator; a deflection device arranged between the inner wall of the magnetic lens and the optical axis of the electron beam and configured to deflect the electron beam; a detection device comprising a first sub-detection device for receiving secondary and backscattered electrons from the specimen, a second sub-detection device for receiving backscattered electrons, and a control device for changing the trajectories of the secondary electrons and the backscattered electrons; an electrostatic lens comprising the second sub-detection device, a specimen stage, and a control electrode for reducing the moving speed of the electron beam and changing the moving directions of the secondary and the backscattered electrons.

The scanning charged particle beam microscope according to the present application is characterized in that, in acquiring an image of the FOV (field of view), interspaced beam irradiation points are set, and then, a deflector is controlled so that a charged particle beam scan is performed faster when the charged particle beam irradiates a position on the sample between each of the irradiation points than when the charged particle beam irradiates a position on the sample corresponding to each of the irradiation points (a position on the sample corresponding to each pixel detecting a signal). This allows the effects from a micro-domain electrification occurring within the FOV to be mitigated or controlled.