A drawing apparatus according to the embodiment includes a chamber configured to house a processing target; a drawing part configured to draw a predetermined pattern on the processing target with a charged particle beam; a resistance measuring part configured to measure a resistance value of the processing target via a grounding member grounding the processing target in the chamber; a receiver configured to receive earthquake information; a controller configured to stop a drawing process in the chamber when the receiver receives the earthquake information; and an arithmetic processor configured to determine whether the processing target is grounded on a basis of the resistance value from the resistance measuring part, wherein the controller resumes the drawing process when the arithmetic processor determines that the processing target is grounded after the drawing process is stopped.

In an embodiment, a method includes: placing a wafer on an implanter platen, the wafer including alignment marks; measuring a position of the wafer by measuring positions of the alignment marks with one or more cameras; determining an angular displacement between the position of the wafer and a reference position of the wafer; and rotating the implanter platen by the angular displacement.

In an embodiment, a method includes: placing a wafer on an implanter platen, the wafer including integrated circuit dies; measuring a position of the wafer by measuring a positions of an outer edge of the integrated circuit dies with a camera; determining an angular displacement between the position of the wafer and a reference position of the wafer; and rotating the implanter platen by the angular displacement.

A method of evaluating a region of interest of a sample including: positioning the sample within in a vacuum chamber of an evaluation tool that includes a scanning electron microscope (SEM) column and a focused ion beam (FIB) column; acquiring a plurality of two-dimensional images of the region of interest by alternating a sequence of delayering the region of interest with a charged particle beam from the FIB column and imaging a surface of the region of interest with the SEM column; generating an initial three-dimensional data cube representing the region of interest by stacking the plurality of two-dimensional images on top of each other in an order in which they were acquired; identifying distortions within the initial three-dimensional data cube; and creating an updated three-dimensional data cube that includes corrections for the identified distortions.

In one embodiment, a multi-charged-particle-beam writing method includes dividing a data path into a plurality of first blocks based on at least either one of each of a plurality of input/output circuits and a plurality of wiring groups, and calculating a first shift amount for multiple beams for each of the plurality of first blocks. The data path is for inputting control data to a cell array on a blanking aperture array substrate. The control data is for controlling ON/OFF of each beam of the multiple beams. Each of the plurality of wiring groups includes a plurality of pieces of wiring connected to the plurality of input/output circuits and grouped together based on inter-wiring distance. The first shift amount is due to at least one of an electric field and a magnetic field for each of the plurality of first blocks. An irradiation position or a dose of the multiple beams is corrected based on the first shift amount, and irradiation is performed.

Described herein are a system and method of preparing integrated circuits (ICs) so that the ICs remain electrically active and can have their active circuitry probed for diagnostic and characterization purposes using charged particle beams. The system employs an infrared camera capable of looking through the silicon substrate of the ICs to image electrical circuits therein, a focused ion beam system that can both image the IC and selectively remove substrate material from the IC, a scanning electron microscope that can both image structures on the IC and measure voltage contrast signals from active circuits on the IC, and a means of extracting heat generated by the active IC. The method uses the system to identify the region of the IC to be probed, and to selectively remove all substrate material over the region to be probed using ion bombardment, and further identifies endpoint detection means of milling to the required depth so as to observe electrical states and waveforms on the active IC.

A method for operating a target processing system for processing a target (23) on a chuck (13), the method comprising providing at least a first chuck position mark (27) and a second chuck position mark (28) on the chuck (13); providing an alignment sensing system (17) arranged for detecting the first and second chuck position marks (27, 28), the alignment sensing system (17) comprising at least a first alignment sensor (61) and a second alignment sensor (62); moving the chuck (13) to a first position based on at least one measurement of the alignment sensing system (17); and measuring at least one value related to the first position of the chuck.

In one embodiment, a multi charged-particle beam writing apparatus includes a plurality of blankers switching between ON and OFF state of a corresponding beam among multiple beams, a main deflector deflecting beams having been subjected to blanking deflection to a writing position of the beams in accordance with movement of a stage, a detector scanning a mark on the stage with each of the beams having been deflected by the main deflector and detecting a beam position from a change in intensity of reflected charged particles and a position of the stage, and a beam shape calculator switching an ON beam, scanning the mark with the ON beam, and calculating a shape of the multiple beams from a beam position. A shape of a deflection field of the main deflector is corrected by using a polynomial representing an amount of beam position shift that is dependent on a beam deflection position of the main deflector and then the mark is scanned with the ON beam. The polynomial is different for each ON beam.

The invention relates to a method for producing a structure in a lithographic material, wherein the structure in the lithographic material is defined by means of a writing beam of an exposure device, in that a plurality of partial structures are written sequentially, wherein for writing the partial structures a write field of the exposure device is displaced and positioned sequentially and that a partial structure is written in the write field in each case, and wherein for positioning of the write field a reference structure is detected by means of an imaging measuring device. For calibration of the write field in the respectively positioned write field, before, during or after writing a partial structure, at least one reference structure element assigned to this partial structure is produced in the lithographic material with the writing beam, wherein the reference structure element after the displacement of the write field is detected by means of the imaging measuring device for writing a further partial structure.

Lithographic apparatuses suitable for, and methodologies involving, complementary e-beam lithography (CEBL) are described. In an example, a blanker aperture array (BAA) for an e-beam tool includes a first column of openings along a first direction, each of the openings of the first column of openings having dog-eared corners. The BAA also includes a second column of openings along the first direction and staggered from the first column of openings, each of the openings of the second column of openings having dog-eared corners. The first and second columns of openings together form an array having a pitch in the first direction. A scan direction of the BAA is along a second direction, orthogonal to the first direction. The pitch of the array corresponds to half of a minimal pitch layout of a target pattern of lines for orientation parallel with the second direction.