Hitachi-high-technologies Corporation

Ryoichi Ishii

Hiroyuki Ito

Takashi Doi

Hajime Kawano

Tadashi Otaka

Yuko Sasaki

Isao Nagaoki

Tomohisa Ohtaki

Yasushi Ebizuka

Yoshihiko Nakayama

Manabu Yano

Kenichi Hirane

Osamu Sato

Haruhisa Takahata

The objective of the present invention is to provide a charged particle beam device such that a tip part can be effectually maintained in a clean state, while the frequency of valve body replacements is also reduced. To achieve the objective, a charged particle beam device is offered, comprising: a partition that is positioned between a charged particle source-side vacuum space and a specimen stage-side vacuum space, said partition further comprising an opening for a charged particle beam to pass through; a driver mechanism that moves a shutter member between a first location within the optical axis of the charged particle beam and a second location outside the optical axis of the charged particle beam; and a control device that controls the driver mechanism. The first location is a location wherein the shutter member is distanced from the partition, and the control device carries out a control that opens a valve between the specimen chamber and the exchange chamber when the shutter member is in a state of being located in the first location.

Charged particle beam device

An exemplary a charged particle beam apparatus converts an inspection position on a test sample (wafer coordinate system) to a setting position of an inspection mechanism (stage coordinate system (polar coordinate system)), a rotating arm and a rotating stage being rotated to be moved for the inspection position on the test sample. In this case, inspection devices are arranged over a locus that is drawn by the center of the rotating stage according to the rotation of the rotating arm. A function for calculating errors (e.g., center shift of the rotating stage) and compensating for the errors is provided, by which the precision of inspection is improved in a charged particle beam apparatus equipped with a biaxial rotating stage mechanism.

Charged particle beam apparatus

The invention relates to a trajectory correction method for a charged particle beam, and provides a low-cost, high accuracy and high-resolution converging optical system for use with a charged particle beam to solve problems with conventional aberration correction systems. To this end, the present invention uses a configuration which forms electromagnetic field which is concentrated towards a center of a beam trajectory axis, causes oblique of the beam to make use of lens effects and bend the trajectory, and consequently, cancels out large external side non-linear effects such a spherical aberration of the electron lens. Specifically, the configuration generates an electric field concentration in a simple manner by providing electrodes above the axis and applying voltages to the electrodes. Further, the above configuration can be realized trough operations using lenses and deflectors with incident axes and image formation positions that are normal.

Charged particle beam trajectory corrector and charged particle beam apparatus

As an image forming method including comparison between images for three-dimensional image construction or the like and an apparatus for forming such images, there are provided an image forming method and an electron microscope capable of obtaining with high accuracy or efficiency information required for comparison. In the image forming method, an image is formed on the basis of comparison between a plurality of images obtained by applying an electron beam to a specimen at different tilt angles. The method includes obtaining a first transmission image with the electron beam applied in a first direction and a second transmission image with the electron beam applied in a second direction, the second transmission image being formed within a region different from a peripheral blurred region resulting from tilting, and making a search in the first transmission image by using the second transmission image.

Image forming method and electron microscope

In an environmental scanning electron microscope in which differential pumping for maintaining the pressure ratio between an electron optical system and a specimen chamber at a predetermined value is effected and a probe electric current is conditioned to meet a predetermined or more value so as to permit observation of uncooked food and moist specimens in low vacuum, there are provided three stages of objective apertures used as apertures for an objective lens for an electron beam in the electron optical system and used also as orifices for differential pumping for maintaining the pressure ratio between the electron optical system and the specimen chamber at a predetermined value. Then, a deflection fulcrum of the electron beam in the electron optical system is set at a mid stage of the three-stage objective aperture.

Environmental scanning electron microcope

Growing community of inventors

Hitachinaka, Japan

Ryoichi Ishii