Fei Comapny

Johannes Jacobus Lambertus Mulders

Alan Frank De Jong

Petrus Hubertus Franciscus Trompenaars

Randall Grafton Lee

Thomas Owen Mitchell

Laurent Roussel

Wilhelmus Michael Busing

Alexander Henstra

Milos Toth

Richard J Young

Bert Henning Freitag

Eric Gerardus Theodoor Bosch

Rudolf Johannes Peter Gerardus Schampers

Wilhelmus Mathijs Marie Kessels

Jacob Simon Faber

Aurélien Philippe Jean Maclou Botman

Remco Theodorus Johannes Petrus Geurts

Adriaan Jacobus Martinus Mackus

Laurens Kuipers

Carmen Francisca Maria Van Vilsteren

The invention provides a method for providing an Au-containing layer onto a surface of a work piece, which method comprises: By using Au(CO)Cl as a precursor for charged particle induced deposition, a gold Au layer may be deposited with a very high purity compared to methods known in the art.

Au-containing layer for charged particle beam processing

A charged-particle microscope with Raman spectroscopy capability and a method for examining a sample using a combined charged-particle microscope and Raman spectroscope. The method includes imaging a region of a sample by irradiating the sample with a beam of charged particles from the microscope; identifying a feature of interest in the region using the microscope; radiatively stimulating and spectroscopically analyzing a portion of the region comprising the feature of interest using a light spot of a width D from the spectroscope, wherein the feature of interest has at least one lateral dimension smaller than width D and, prior to using the light spot of the width D from the spectroscope, an in situ surface modification technique is used to cause positive discrimination of an expected Raman signal from the feature of interest relative to an expected Raman signal from the part of the portion other than the feature of interest.

Charged-particle microscope with Raman spectroscopy capability

Samples to be imaged in a Transmission Electron Microscope must be thinned to form a lamella with a thickness of, for example, 20 nm. This is commonly done by sputtering with ions in a charged particle apparatus equipped with a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) column, a Focused Ion Beam (FIB) column, and one or more Gas Injection Systems (GISses). A problem that occurs is that a large part of the lamella becomes amorphous due to bombardment by ions, and that ions get implanted in the sample. The invention provides a solution by applying a voltage difference between the capillary of the GIS and the sample, and directing a beam of ions or electrons to the jet of gas. The beam ionizes gas that is accelerated to the sample, where (when using a low voltage between sample and GIS) low energy milling occurs, and thus little sample thickness becomes amorphous.

Low energy ion milling or deposition

The invention relates to a method of forming a vitrified sample on a sample holder for inspection in an electron microscope. It is known to spray a solution on a grid and then immerse the grid in a cryogenic liquid, such as ethane or liquid nitrogen. The invention proposes to spray small droplets of the liquid on a cryogenic surface, such as a grid or a sample holder in vacuum. The liquid forms vitrified sample material when hitting the surface due to the low temperature of the grid or sample holder. A lamella may be excavated from the thus formed sample material, to be studied in a TEM, or the vitrified sample material may be directly observed in a SEM. In an embodiment the material may be sprayed on a cryogenic liquid, to be scooped from the liquid and placed on a grid.

Forming a vitrified sample for electron microscopy

A method of depositing material onto a substrate at cryogenic temperatures using beam-induced deposition. A precursor gas is chosen from a group of compounds having a melting point that is lower than the cryogenic temperature of the substrate. Preferably the precursor gas is chosen from a group of compounds having a sticking coefficient that is between 0.5 and 0.8 at the desired cryogenic temperature. This will result in the precursor gas reaching equilibrium between precursor molecules adsorbed onto the substrate surface and precursor gas molecules desorbing from the substrate surface at the desired cryogenic temperature. Suitable precursor gases can comprise alkanes, alkenes, or alkynes. At a cryogenic temperature of between &#x2212;50&#xb0; C. and &#x2212;85&#xb0; C., hexane can be used as a precursor gas to deposit material; at a cryogenic temperature of between &#x2212;50&#xb0; C. and &#x2212;180&#xb0; C., propane can be used as a precursor gas.

Beam-induced deposition at cryogenic temperatures

Electron-beam-induced chemical reactions with precursor gases are controlled by adsorbate depletion control. Adsorbate depletion can be controlled by controlling the beam current, preferably by rapidly blanking the beam, and by cooling the substrate. The beam preferably has a low energy to reduce the interaction volume. By controlling the depletion and the interaction volume, a user has the ability to produce precise shapes.

Charged particle beam processing

A method for forming microscopic 3D structures. In the method according to the invention a substrate () is placed in a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The SEM is equipped with a Gas Injection System (GIS) () for directing a jet of precursor fluid to the substrate. The substrate is cooled below the freezing point of the precursor gas so that a frozen layer of the precursor gas can be applied to the substrate. By now repeatedly applying a frozen layer of the precursor to the substrate and irradiate the frozen layer with an electron beam (), a stack of frozen layers () is built, each layer showing an irradiated part () in which the precursor is converted to another material. After applying the last layer the temperature is raised so that the unprocessed precursor () can evaporate. As a result 3D structures with overhanging features can be built.

Method for forming microscopic 3D structures

The invention relates to a method for obtaining images from slices of a specimen, the method comprising: repeatedly obtaining an image of the surface layer of the specimen () and removing the surface layer of the specimen, thereby bringing the next slice to the surface; characterized in that after at least one of the removals of a surface layer the specimen is exposed to a staining agent. This method is especially suited for use in a particle-optical instrument equipped with both a scanning electron microscope column () and a focused ion beam column (). The specimen can e.g. be stained in situ by admitting a gas, such as OsO4 (osmiumtetroxide), to the specimen. This method also makes it possible to perform differential staining by first making an image of the specimen exposed to a first staining agent, and subsequently making an image of the specimen when it is additionally stained by a second staining agent.

Method for obtaining images from slices of specimen

The invention relates to a method for forming microscopic structures. By scanning a focused particle beam over a substrate in the presence of a precursor fluid, a patterned seed layer is formed. By now growing this layer with Atomic Layer Deposition or Chemical Vapor Deposition, a high quality layer can be grown. An advantage of this method is that forming the seed layer takes relatively little time, as only a very thin layer needs to be deposited.

Method for forming microscopic structures on a substrate

The invention relates to a method for producing high-quality samples for e.g. TEM inspection. When thinning samples with e.g. a Focused Ion Beam apparatus (FIB), the sample often oxidizes when taken from the FIB due to the exposure to air. This results in low-quality samples, that may be unfit for further analysis. By forming a passivation layer, preferably a hydrogen passivation layer, on the sample in situ, that is: before taking the sample from the FIB, high quality TEM samples can be produced.

Method of machining a work piece with a focused particle beam

The invention relates to a method for obtaining images from slices of a specimen, the method comprising: This method is especially suited for use in a particle-optical instrument equipped with both a scanning electron microscope column () and a focused ion beam column (). The specimen can e.g. be stained in situ by admitting a gas, such as OsO(osmiumtetroxide), to the specimen. This method also makes it possible to perform differential staining by first making an image of the specimen exposed to a first staining agent, and subsequently making an image of the specimen when it is additionally stained by a second staining agent.

A nanostructure is fabricated using charged particle deposition to deposit a catalyst on a substrate. A charged particle beam is directed to location on the substrate where the catalyst is to be deposited, with a beam-activated precursor gas also being directed to the location. For example, a nickel dot can be selectively deposited onto a substrate by using a charged particle beam to decompose a nickel-containing precursor gas, and then a carbon nanotube can be grown on the nickel dot, with the diameter of the nanotube conforming to the size of the nickel dot.

Directed growth of nanotubes on a catalyst

A method of fabricating a nanotube probe tip and the resultant probe tip, particularly for use in an atomic force microscope. A moderately sharply peaked support structure has its tip cut or flattened to have a substantially flat end of size of about 20 to 200 nm across. The support structure may be formed by etching a conical end into a silica optical fiber. Nickel or other catalyzing metal such as iron is directionally sputtered onto the flat end and the sloped sidewalls of the support structure. The nickel is anisotropically etched to remove all the nickel from the sidewalls but leaving at least 15 nm on the flat end to form a small nickel dot. A nanotube is then grown with the nickel catalyzing its growth such that only a single nanotube forms on the nickel dot and its diameter conforms to the size of the nickel dot. In another preferred embodiment of the invention, a catalyst material can be directly deposited on to the probe end using charged particle beam deposition, such as electron beam deposition.

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Eindhoven, Netherlands

Johannes Jacobus Lambertus Mulders