公开(公告)号：EP4322199A1

公开(公告)日：2024-02-14

申请号：EP22189488.4

申请日：2022-08-09

申请人： FEI COMPANY

发明人： Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan ,  de Jong, Erwin ,  Radulescu, Andrei ,  Mc Cormack, Jamie ,  Keizer, Jeroen

IPC分类号： H01J37/244 ,  H01J37/04

摘要： The invention relates to a system for sensor protection in electron imaging applications comprising a beam control device configured to provide a beam signal based on an incoming beam signal, wherein the beam signal comprises an altered beam intensity, wherein the beam control device is further configured to receive a control signal and to activate based on the control signal. The system further comprises a sensor configured to capture the beam signal and to provide a capture signal based on the beam signal, and a control module configured to provide the control signal to the beam control device, to generate an exposure value based on the capture signal and to modify the control signal based on the exposure value.

公开(公告)号：EP3624167A1

公开(公告)日：2020-03-18

申请号：EP18194496.8

申请日：2018-09-14

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Mohammadi-Gheidari, Ali ,  Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan ,  Kieft, Erik René ,  Veen, van Gerard Nicolaas Anne

IPC分类号： H01J37/04 ,  H01J37/06 ,  H01J37/147 ,  H01J37/153

摘要： An electron beam imaging apparatus comprising:
- A specimen holder, for holding a specimen;
- An electron source, for producing a precursor electron beam;
- An aperture plate comprising an array of apertures, for producing an array of electron beams from said precursor electron beam;
- An electron beam column, for directing said array of electron beams onto said specimen,
wherein said electron beam column is configured to have a length L less than 300 mm.

公开(公告)号：EP3496129A1

公开(公告)日：2019-06-12

申请号：EP17205782.0

申请日：2017-12-07

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Henstra, Alexander ,  Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan

IPC分类号： H01J37/05 ,  H01J37/26

摘要： A method of using a Transmission Charged Particle Microscope comprising:
- A specimen holder, for holding a specimen;
- A source, for producing a beam of charged particles;
- An illuminator, for directing said beam so as to irradiate the specimen;
- An imaging system, for receiving a flux of charged particles transmitted through the specimen and directing it onto a sensing device;
- A controller, for controlling at least some operational aspects of the microscope, in which method the sensing device is chosen to be an EELS/EFTEM module comprising:
- An entrance plane;
- An image plane, where in EELS mode an EELS spectrum is formed and in EFTEM mode an EFTEM image is formed;
- A slit plane between said entrance plane and image plane, where in EFTEM mode an energy dispersed focus is formed;
- A dispersing device, between said entrance plane and slit plane, for dispersing an incoming beam into an energy-dispersed beam with an associated dispersion direction;
- A first series of quadrupoles between said dispersing device and slit plane;
- A second series of quadrupoles between said slit plane and image plane, which dispersing device and quadrupoles are arranged along an optical axis, whereby, for a Cartesian coordinate system (X,Y,Z) in which said optical axis is disposed along Z, said dispersion direction is defined as being parallel to X,

comprising the following steps:
- In said first quadrupole series, exciting one or more quadrupoles so as to deflect an off-axis non-dispersive YZ ray leaving said dispersing device onto a path paraxial to said optical axis from said slit plane to said image plane;
- In said second quadrupole series, exciting either:
(a) A single quadrupole; or
(b) A pair of adjacent quadrupoles,

so as to focus said energy-dispersed beam onto said image plane.

公开(公告)号：EP3889995A1

公开(公告)日：2021-10-06

申请号：EP20167235.9

申请日：2020-03-31

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan

IPC分类号： H01J37/26

摘要： The invention relates to a transmission charged particle microscope comprising a charged particle beam source for emitting a charged particle beam, a sample holder for holding a sample, an illuminator for directing the charged particle beam emitted from the charged particle beam source onto the sample, and a control unit for controlling operations of the transmission charged particle microscope. As defined herein, the transmission charged particle microscope is arranged for operating in at least two modes that substantially yield a first magnification whilst keeping said diffraction pattern substantially in focus. Said at least two modes comprise a first mode having first settings of a final projector lens of a projecting system; and a second mode having second settings of said final projector lens.

公开(公告)号：EP4002420A1

公开(公告)日：2022-05-25

申请号：EP20207192.4

申请日：2020-11-12

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan

IPC分类号： H01J37/26

摘要： The disclosure relates to a method of determining an energy width of a charged particle beam, comprising the steps of providing a charged particle beam, directing said beam towards a specimen, and forming an energy-dispersed beam from a flux of charged particles transmitted through the specimen. As defined herein, the method comprises the steps of providing a slit element in a slit plane, and using said slit element for blocking a part of said energy-dispersed beam, as well as the step of modifying said energy-dispersed beam at the location of said slit plane in such a way that said energy dispersed beam is partially blocked at said slit element. The unblocked part of said energy-dispersed beam is imaged and an intensity gradient of said imaged energy-dispersed beam is determined, with which the energy width of the charged particle beam can be determined.

公开(公告)号：EP3929962A1

公开(公告)日：2021-12-29

申请号：EP20182306.9

申请日：2020-06-25

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan ,  Pechnikova, Evgeniia ,  Geurink, Rudolf ,  Kotchea, Abhay ,  MacCormack, Jamie

IPC分类号： H01J37/26

摘要： The disclosure relates to a method of imaging a specimen using a transmission charged particle microscope, said method comprising providing a specimen, and providing a charged particle beam and directing said charged particle beam onto said specimen for generating a flux of charged particles transmitted through the specimen. The method comprises the step of generating and recording a first energy filtered flux of charged particles transmitted through the specimen, wherein said first energy filtered flux of charged particles substantially consists of non-scattered and elastically scattered charged particles. The method as disclosed herein comprises the further step of generating and recording a second energy filtered flux of charged particles transmitted through the specimen, wherein said second energy filtered flux of charged particles substantially consists of inelastically scattered charged particles. Said first and second recorded energy filtered flux are then used for imaging said specimen with increased contrast.

公开(公告)号：EP3489989A1

公开(公告)日：2019-05-29

申请号：EP17203708.7

申请日：2017-11-27

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan

IPC分类号： H01J37/05 ,  H01J37/26

摘要： A method of using a Transmission Charged Particle Microscope comprising:
- A specimen holder, for holding a specimen;
- A source, for producing a beam of charged particles;
- An illuminator, for directing said beam along an optical axis so as to irradiate the specimen, the illuminator comprising:
• a monochromator, which is configured to produce an output beam with a given energy spread ΔE0; and
• a condenser lens assembly;

- An imaging system, for receiving a flux of charged particles transmitted through the specimen and directing it onto a sensing device;
- A controller, for controlling at least some operational aspects of the microscope, comprising the following steps:
- In a first use session, selecting at least one of:
(a) an excitation of a first lens of said condenser lens assembly;
(b) a width of a condenser aperture downstream of said first lens,
so as to produce a first width W1 - and associated first energy spread ΔE1 - of an emerging beam exiting said aperture;

- In a second use session, selecting at least one of said parameters (a) and (b) so as to produce a second, different width W2 - and associated second, different energy spread ΔE2 - of said emerging beam.

公开(公告)号：EP3489989B1

公开(公告)日：2020-07-08

申请号：EP17203708.7

申请日：2017-11-27

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan

IPC分类号： H01J37/09

公开(公告)号：EP3399537B1

公开(公告)日：2019-10-16

申请号：EP18170249.9

申请日：2018-05-01

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Mohammadi-Gheidari, Ali ,  Henstra, Alexander ,  Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan ,  Liu, Kun ,  Dona, Pleun ,  Schwind, Gregory A. ,  Van de Water, Gerbert Jeroen ,  Bischoff, Maarten

IPC分类号： H01J37/065 ,  H01J37/067 ,  H01J37/145 ,  H01J37/28

公开(公告)号：EP3370247A1

公开(公告)日：2018-09-05

申请号：EP18159059.7

申请日：2018-02-28

申请人： FEI Company

发明人： Henstra, Alexander ,  Tiemeijer, Peter Christiaan

IPC分类号： H01J37/153

CPC分类号： H01J37/265 ,  H01J37/08 ,  H01J37/1472 ,  H01J37/153 ,  H01J2237/1534

摘要： A method of operating a charged particle microscope comprising the following steps:
- Providing a specimen on a specimen holder;
- Using a source to produce a beam of charged particles;
- Passing said beam through an illuminator comprising:
▪ A source lens, with an associated particle-optical axis;
▪ A condenser aperture, which is disposed between the source lens and specimen and is configured to define a footprint of said beam upon the specimen;

- Irradiating the specimen with the beam emerging from said illuminator;
- Using a detector to detect radiation emanating from the specimen in response to said irradiation, and producing an associated image,
specifically comprising the following steps:
- Choosing a set of emission angles from said source;
- For each emission angle in said set, selecting a corresponding sub-beam that emits from the source at that emission angle, and storing a test image formed by that sub-beam, thereby compiling a set of test images corresponding to said set of emission angles;
- Analyzing said set of test images to evaluate illuminator aberrations generated prior to said condenser aperture.