In multi electron beam systems, “Neighbours Matter”

Journal Article (2023)
Author(s)

A. Mohammadi Gheidari (Thermo Fisher Scientific, TU Delft - ImPhys/Hoogenboom group)

E. R. Kieft (Thermo Fisher Scientific)

X. Guo (TU Delft - ImPhys/Hoogenboom group)

M. Wisse (TU Delft - ImPhys/Microscopy Instrumentation & Techniques)

Pieter Kruit (TU Delft - ImPhys/Hoogenboom group)

Research Group
ImPhys/Hoogenboom group
Copyright
© 2023 A. Mohammadi Gheidari, E. R. Kieft, X. Guo, M. Wisse, P. Kruit
DOI related publication
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ultramic.2023.113735
More Info
expand_more
Publication Year
2023
Language
English
Copyright
© 2023 A. Mohammadi Gheidari, E. R. Kieft, X. Guo, M. Wisse, P. Kruit
Research Group
ImPhys/Hoogenboom group
Volume number
249
Reuse Rights

Other than for strictly personal use, it is not permitted to download, forward or distribute the text or part of it, without the consent of the author(s) and/or copyright holder(s), unless the work is under an open content license such as Creative Commons.

Abstract

In the Multi beam source (MBS) of our Multi Beam Scanning Electron Microscope (MBSEM), an aperture lens array (ALA) splits the emission cone of the Schottky field emitter into multiple beamlets. When the apertures in the ALA are close to each other, the ALA can introduce aberrations to these beamlets through the electrostatic interaction of neighbouring apertures with each aperture's lens field. When the apertures are arranged in a square grid pattern, the aberration causes fourfold astigmatism. The effect on the beam spot is analyzed through a combination of 3D simulations and experimental validation. To counterbalance the fourfold astigmatism, a correction scheme is proposed in which a slightly non-round profile is applied to the aperture lenses.