A multi-beam pattern definition device for use in a particle-beam processing or inspection apparatus, which is irradiated with a beam of electrically charged particles and allows passage of the beam through a plurality of apertures to form corresponding beamlets, comprises an aperture array device in which said apertures are realized according to several sets of apertures arranged in respective aperture arrangements, and an absorber array device having a plurality of openings configured for the passage of at least a subset of beamlets that are formed by the apertures. The absorber array device comprises a plurality of openings corresponding to one of the aperture arrangements of the aperture array device, whereas it includes a charged-particle absorbing structure comprising absorbing regions surrounded by elevated regions and configured to absorb charged particles impinging thereupon at locations corresponding to apertures of the other aperture arrangements of the aperture array device, effectively confining the effects of irradiated particles and electric charge therein.

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.

The present disclosure relates generally to ion implantation, and more particularly, to systems and processes for adjusting a ribbon beam angle of an ion implantation system. An exemplary ion implantation system includes an ion source configured to generate a ribbon beam, a wafer chuck configured to hold a wafer during implantation by the ribbon beam, a dipole magnet disposed between the ion source and the wafer chuck, and a controller. The dipole magnet includes at least two coils configured to adjust a ribbon beam angle of the ribbon beam at one or more locations along a path of the ribbon beam between the ion source and the wafer held in the wafer chuck. The controller is configured to control the ion source, the wafer chuck, and the dipole magnet.

A scanning transmission electron microscope that scans a specimen with an electron probe to acquire an image. The scanning transmission electron microscope includes: an optical system which includes a condenser lens and an objective lens; an imaging device which is arranged on a back focal plane or a plane conjugate to the back focal plane of the objective lens and which is capable of photographing a Ronchigram; and a control unit which performs adjustment of the optical system. The control unit is configured or programed to: acquire an image of a change in a Ronchigram that is attributable to a change in a relative positional relationship between the specimen and the electron probe; and determine a center of the Ronchigram based on the image of the change in the Ronchigram.

In an electron beam device provided with two columns including an irradiation optical system and an imaging optical system, a photoelectron image for use in adjusting the irradiation optical system is made sharper. The electron beam device includes: an irradiation optical system which irradiates a sample placed on a stage with an electron beam; a light irradiation unit 50 which irradiates the sample with light containing ultraviolet rays; a sample voltage control unit 44 which applies a negative voltage to the sample so that, before the electron beam reaches the sample, the electron orbit inverts; and an imaging optical system which acquires a mirror electron image by forming an image of mirror electrons reflected by application of the negative voltage. In the electron beam device, the imaging optical system includes a sensor 32 which obtains a mirror electron image and a stray light suppression part 27 which is provided between the sensor and the stage 31 and which suppresses reaching the sensor of the light emitted from the light irradiation unit.

Provided is an electron beam irradiation apparatus including: an aligner configured to perform an alignment of an electron beam by deflecting the electron beam; a deflector having a plurality of electrodes and configured to deflect the electron beam after passing through the aligner; and an adjuster configured to adjust deflection caused by the aligner, wherein the adjuster is configured to perform, on each of the plurality of electrodes, detecting an image of the electron beam by applying a test voltage to one of the plurality of electrodes and applying a reference voltage to the other electrodes, determine a position shift of the electron beam based on each position of the image of the electron beam corresponding to each electrode, and adjust deflection of the aligner so as to cancel the position shift of the electron beam.

An object is to provide an electron gun that makes it possible to verify whether or not an electron beam emitted form a photocathode is misaligned from a designed emission center axis. The object can be achieved by an electron gun including: a light source; a photocathode; and an anode. The electron gun includes an intermediate electrode arranged between the photocathode and the anode, an electron beam shielding member configured to block a part of an electron beam, a measurement unit configured to measure an intensity of an electron beam blocked by the electron beam shielding member, and an electron beam emission direction deflector arranged between the anode and the electron beam shielding member and configured to change a position where an electron beam that passed through the anode reaches the electron beam shielding member. The intermediate electrode has an electron beam passage hole and a drift space.

A multiple-charged particle-beam irradiation apparatus includes a shaping aperture array substrate that causes a charged particle beam to pass through a plurality of first apertures to form multi-beams, a plurality of blanking aperture array substrates each provided with a plurality of second apertures, which enable corresponding beams to pass, and including a blanker arranged at each of the second apertures, a movable table on which the blanking aperture array substrates are mounted so as to be spaced apart from each other in a second direction, which is orthogonal to a first direction along an optical axis, and that moves in the second direction to position one of the blanking aperture array substrates on the optical axis, and an alignment mechanism that performs an alignment adjustment between the blanking aperture array substrate on the optical axis and the shaping aperture array substrate.

An improved charged particle beam inspection apparatus, and more particularly, a particle beam inspection apparatus including an improved alignment mechanism is disclosed. An improved charged particle beam inspection apparatus may include a second electron detection device to generate one or more images of one or more beam spots of the plurality of secondary electron beams during the alignment mode. The beam spot image may be used to determine the alignment characteristics of one or more of the plurality of secondary electron beams and adjust a configuration of a secondary electron projection system.

A method for operating a particle beam microscope comprises setting a distance of an object from an objective lens, setting an excitation of the objective lens, setting an excitation of a double deflector to a first setting such that a particle beam is incident on the object at a first orientation, and recording a first particle-microscopic image at these settings. The method also comprises setting the excitation of the double deflector to a second setting such that the particle beam is incident on the object at a second orientation which differs from the first orientation; and recording a second particle-microscopic image at the second setting of the double deflector. Thereupon, a new distance of the object from the objective lens is determined based on an analysis of the first and second particle-microscopic images, and the distance of the object from the objective lens is set to the new distance.