There is provided a scanning electron microscope which has a sample chamber capable of being evacuated to a low vacuum. The scanning electron microscope includes an electron gun for emitting an electron beam, an objective lens for focusing the emitted beam onto a sample, and a sample chamber in which the sample is housed. The objective lens includes an inner polepiece, an outer polepiece disposed outside the inner polepiece and facing the sample chamber, at least one through-hole extending through the inner and outer polepieces, and at least one cover member that closes off the through-hole. An opening is formed between the inner polepiece and the outer polepiece. The objective lens causes leakage of magnetic field from the opening toward the sample. The sample chamber has a degree of vacuum lower than that in an inner space that forms an electron beam path inside the inner polepiece.

According to one aspect of the technique of the present disclosure, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus including: a process vessel in which a substrate is processed; an outer vessel configured to cover an outer circumference of the process vessel; a gas flow path provided between the outer vessel and the outer circumference of the process vessel; an exhaust path in communication with the gas flow path; an adjusting valve configured to be capable of adjusting a conductance of the exhaust path; a first exhaust apparatus provided on the exhaust path downstream of the adjusting valve; a pressure sensor configured to measure an inner pressure of the outer vessel; and a controller configured to be capable of adjusting an exhaust volume flow rate of the first exhaust apparatus by controlling the first exhaust apparatus based on a pressure measured by the pressure sensor.

The electron gun is provided with a first anode electrode and a second anode electrode to generate an acceleration and deceleration electric field. A lens electric field makes it possible to irradiate a sample with an electron beam emitted from a part outside an optical axis of the photoelectric film without being blocked by a differential exhaust diaphragm. A wide range of electron beams off-optical axis can be used even in a high-brightness photocathode that requires high vacuum. As a result, the photoelectric film and the electron gun can be extended in life, can be stabilized, and can be increased in brightness. Further, it is possible to facilitate a control of emitting electron beams from a plurality of positions on the photoelectric film, a timing control of emitting electron beams from a plurality of positions, a condition control of an electron beam in an electron microscope using electron beams.

Described are various embodiments of an ion beam chamber fluid delivery system and method for delivering a fluid onto a substrate in an ion beam system during operation. In one embodiment, the system comprises: a chamber comprising an ion beam gun oriented so as to cause ions to impinge the substrate, said chamber having a fluid delivery conduit therein for delivering the fluid into the chamber; a transferable substrate stage for holding the substrate, the transferable stage further configured to move between an operating position and a payload position during non-operation, said payload position for receiving and removing said substrate; and a fluid delivery nozzle being in a fixed location relative to the transferable stage, at least during operation, with an outlet position that is configured to deliver a fluid to a predetermined location on said transferable stage.

An electron beam source including a cathode, an anode, a means for deflecting an electron beam over a target surface and at least one vacuum pump, the electron beam source further including a contraction area arranged between the anode and the means for deflecting the electron beam where a hole in the contraction area is aligned with a hole in the anode with respect to the cathode, a first vacuum pump is arranged between the contraction area and the anode and a second vacuum pump is arranged above the anode, a gas inlet is provided between the contraction area and the means for deflecting the electron beam, wherein a first crossover of the electron beam is arranged between the cathode and the anode and a second crossover is arranged at or in close proximity to the contraction area.

In an embodiment, a system is provided that includes an electron gun, a focusing system, and a housing. The electron gun can include a cold cathode electron source and an extraction electrode. The focusing system can be configured to focus a beam of electrons extracted from the electron gun to a focal region. The housing can include the electron gun and extend along a housing axis in the direction of the electron beam. The cold cathode source is configured to emit electrons at a first operating pressure that is higher than a second operating pressure at the focal region of the electron beam.

A particle beam device has a particle source, an extraction stop, an anode stop and a beam tube. A driver system of the particle beam device is configured to apply an electrical excitation stop potential to the extraction stop, to apply an electrical anode stop potential, able to be set in a variable manner, to the anode stop and to apply an electrical beam tube potential to the beam tube. A controller of the particle beam device is configured to control the driver system such that a voltage between the extraction stop and the anode stop is able to be set in a variable manner, as a result of which a current strength of the particle beam passing through the aperture of the anode stop is able to be set in a variable manner.

In an atom probe having a vacuum chamber containing a specimen mount and a detector for receiving ions emitted from the specimen, a high vacuum subchamber is provided about the specimen mount, with an aperture in the subchamber allowing passage of emitted ions to the detector. The high vacuum subchamber may be pumped to higher vacuum (lower pressure) than the vacuum chamber, and so long as the pressure in the vacuum chamber is below about 10.sup.−1 Pa, very little gas diffusion takes place through the aperture, allowing higher vacuum to be maintained in the subchamber despite the aperture opening to the chamber. The higher vacuum in the subchamber about the specimen assists in reducing noise in atom probe image data. The aperture may conveniently be provided by the aperture in a counter electrode, such as a local electrode, as commonly used in atom probes.

A differential pumping apparatus for creating a high vacuum inside a processing space includes a displacement drive unit configured to move a substrate to be processed or a head, to adjust parallelism and distance between a surface to be processed and a surface of the head. Gap measurement devices are placed at three or more locations along the periphery of the surface of the head to provide distance information. A gap control unit is configured to control the displacement drive unit in response to the distance information between the surface to be processed and the surface adapted to face the surface to be processed, so that the surface to be processed and the surface adapted to face the surface to be processed are parallel.

Disclosed is a charged particle optical apparatus, which includes a particle optical arrangement, configured to define a particle beam path for inspecting an object. The object is accommodated in a pressure-controlled interior of a specimen chamber during the inspection of the object. The charged particle optical apparatus further includes a differential pressure module having a differential pressure aperture. A positioning arm is arranged in the specimen chamber for selectively position the differential pressure module within the pressure-controlled interior of the specimen chamber into an operating position in which the particle beam path passes through the differential pressure aperture. The selective positioning includes an advancing movement of the differential pressure module toward the primary particle beam path. The advancing movement is transmitted to the differential pressure module by a track-guided movement of the positioning arm.