A multi-beam inspection apparatus including an improved source conversion unit is disclosed. The improved source conversion unit may comprise a micro-structure deflector array including a plurality of multipole structures. The micro-deflector deflector array may comprise a first multipole structure having a first radial shift from a central axis of the array and a second multipole structure having a second radial shift from the central axis of the array. The first radial shift is larger than the second radial shift, and the first multipole structure comprises a greater number of pole electrodes than the second multipole structure to reduce deflection aberrations when the plurality of multipole structures deflects a plurality of charged particle beams.

Disclosed herein is an apparatus comprising: a first electrically conductive layer; a second electrically conductive layer; a plurality of optics element s between the first electrically conductive layer and the second electrically conductive layer, wherein the plurality of optics elements are configured to influence a plurality of beams of charged particles; a third electrically conductive layer between the first electrically conductive layer and the second electrically conductive layer; and an electrically insulating layer physically connected to the optics elements, wherein the electrically insulating layer is configured to electrically insulate the optics elements from the first electrically conductive layer, and the second electrically conductive layer.

Apparatus include a reflector positioned adjacent to a sample location that is situated to receive a charged particle beam (CPB) along a CPB axis from a CPB focusing assembly so that the reflector is situated to receive light emitted from a sample at the sample location based on a CPB-sample interaction or a photon-sample interaction and to direct the light to a photodetector, and a steering electrode situated adjacent to the reflector so as to direct secondary charged particles emitted from the sample based on the CPB-sample interaction away from the reflector and CPB axis. Methods and systems are also disclosed.

Systems and methods of imaging a sample using a tilted charged-particle beam. The apparatus may comprise a first deflector located between the charged-particle source and an objective lens and configured to deflect the charged-particle beam away from the primary optical axis; a second deflector located substantially at a focal plane of the objective lens and configured to deflect the charged-particle beam back towards the primary optical axis; and a third deflector located substantially at a principal plane of the objective lens, wherein the third deflector is configured to shift a wobbling center of the objective lens to an off-axis wobbling location, and wherein the first and the second deflectors are configured to deflect the charged-particle beam to pass through the off-axis wobbling location to land on a surface of a sample at a first landing location and having a beam-tilt angle.

A multi-beam apparatus for observing a sample with high resolution and high throughput is proposed. In the apparatus, a source-conversion unit forms plural and parallel images of one single electron source by deflecting plural beamlets of a parallel primary-electron beam therefrom, and one objective lens focuses the plural deflected beamlets onto a sample surface and forms plural probe spots thereon. A movable condenser lens is used to collimate the primary-electron beam and vary the currents of the plural probe spots, a pre-beamlet-forming means weakens the Coulomb effect of the primary-electron beam, and the source-conversion unit minimizes the sizes of the plural probe spots by minimizing and compensating the off-axis aberrations of the objective lens and condenser lens.

A charged particle beam device includes a charged particle source which emits a charged particle beam radiated on a sample; a condenser lens system which has at least one condenser lens focusing the charged particle beam at a predetermined demagnification; a deflector which is positioned between a condenser lens of a most downstream side and a charged particle source in the condenser lens system, and moves a virtual position of the charged particle source; and a control unit which controls the deflector and the condenser lens system. The control unit controls the deflector to move the virtual position of the charged particle source to a position of suppressing a deviation, which is caused by a change of the demagnification of the condenser lens system, of a center trajectory of the charged particle beam downstream of the condenser lens system.

A multi-beam apparatus for observing a sample with high resolution and high throughput is proposed. In the apparatus, a source-conversion unit changes a single electron source into a virtual multi-source array, a primary projection imaging system projects the array to form plural probe spots on the sample, and a condenser lens adjusts the currents of the plural probe spots. In the source-conversion unit, the image-forming means is on the upstream of the beamlet-limit means, and thereby generating less scattered electrons. The image-forming means not only forms the virtual multi-source array, but also compensates the off-axis aberrations of the plurality of probe spots.

A charged particle beam device includes a charged particle source which emits a charged particle beam radiated on a sample; a condenser lens system which has at least one condenser lens focusing the charged particle beam at a predetermined demagnification; a deflector which is positioned between a condenser lens of a most downstream side and a charged particle source in the condenser lens system, and moves a virtual position of the charged particle source; and a control unit which controls the deflector and the condenser lens system. The control unit controls the deflector to move the virtual position of the charged particle source to a position of suppressing a deviation, which is caused by a change of the demagnification of the condenser lens system, of a center trajectory of the charged particle beam in the downstream of the condenser lens system.

The present invention enlarges a range of movement of field of view by beam deflection with a simple deflector configuration and suppresses deterioration of a signal electron detection rate caused by the beam deflection. A scanning electron microscope according to the present invention is provided with a first deflection field setting module that sets plural deflectors to move a scanning area on a specimen by a primary electron beam to a position deviated from an axis extended from an electron source toward the center of an objective lens and a second deflection field setting module that sets the plural deflectors so that trajectories of signal electrons are corrected without changing the scanning area set by the first deflection field setting module. The control unit controls the plural deflectors by adding a setting value set by the second deflection field setting module to a setting value set by the first deflection field setting module.

A charged particle beam device includes a deflection unit that deflects a charged particle beam released from a charged particle source to irradiate a sample, a reflection plate that reflects secondary electrons generated from the sample, and a control unit that controls the deflection unit based on an image generated by detecting the secondary electrons reflected from the reflection plate. The deflection unit includes an electromagnetic deflection unit that electromagnetically scans with the charged particle beam by a magnetic field and an electrostatic deflection unit that electrostatically scans with the charged particle beam by an electric field. The control unit controls the electromagnetic deflection unit and the electrostatic deflection unit, superimposes an electromagnetic deflection vector generated by the electromagnetic scanning and an electrostatic deflection vector generated by the electrostatic scanning, and controls at least a trajectory of the charged particle beam.