Charged particle beam apparatus

• US 8,335,397 B2
• Filed: 05/21/2008
• Issued: 12/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi High-Tech Company Limited (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (Hitachi, Ltd.)
• Inventors: Takane, Atsushi, Ikeda, Mitsuji, Kobaru, Atsushi
• Primary Examiner(s): Park, Chan S
• Assistant Examiner(s): PERLMAN, DAVID S
• Application Number:
  US12/124,666
• Publication Number:
  US 20080292199A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,672 Days
• Field of Search: 382254-275
• US Class Current: 382/275
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 23/225 using electron or ion
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/98 Detection or correction of errors, e.g. by rescanning the pattern or by human intervention; Evaluation of the quality of the acquired patterns
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/693 Acquisition
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 2237/221 Image processing
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 2237/28 Scanning microscopes

Abstract

In a method and apparatus for removing artifacts from an image generated a charged partial beam scanning device, a scanning method is determined, and the frequency of an artifact appearing on an image can then be determined, based on scanning method. A step 703, a frequency domain for removing an artifact can be determined from the vertical and horizontal widths determined by experimentation in advance with respect to the frequency position Photography is performed to obtain an image, which is Fourier transformed and the determined frequency domain is replaced, for example, by “0.” The resulting image is subjected to inverse Fourier transformation, and displayed and stored. The flow of such processing enables decreasing an artifact appearing on an image, depending on a scanning method. The frequency domain (vertical and horizontal widths) that is to be eliminated and a method for replacement by “0” are determined in advance, depending on the kind of inspected samples and a method can be selected depending on the kind of samples.

Claims

1. A charged particle beam apparatus comprising:

a scanning section that scans a sample two-dimensionally, in first and second directions, with a charged particle beam so as to display an image of the scanned region with a signal based on a charged particle beam from the sample detected by the scanning, wherein the scanning section employs a partitioning and interlacing method in which a plurality of partitioned regions are defined by partitioning a region to be scanned, in the second direction, that is different from the first direction, and scanning in the first direction is performed for every partitioned region sequentially in a skipping manner; and

,

an image processing section for removing an artifact that is attributable to the scanning;

wherein the image processing section removes the artifact by a processing based on a frequency of the artifact that is pre-evaluated according to the size of the partitioned region in the second direction.

2. The charged particle beam apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the image processing section removes the artifact appearing in a Fourier transformed image obtained by Fourier transforming an actual image.

3. The charged particle beam apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

when i) a first period is a number of pixels in each partitioned regions, which number is obtained by dividing the number of pixels in the second direction in an actual image by the number of partitioned regions, and ii) a frequency image is a Fourier transformed image that corresponds to the first period, and is obtained by Fourier transforming the actual image, the image processing section carries out a process of removing a luminance signal of the frequency image at multiple frequencies;

the luminance signals are arranged in the first direction; and

the luminance signals result from Fourier transformation of an image that corresponds to the first period.

4. The charged particle beam apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when i) a first period is a number of pixels in each partitioned regions, which number is obtained by dividing the number of pixels in the second direction in an actual image by the number of the partitioned regions, and ii) a frequency image is a Fourier transformed image that corresponds to the first period, and is obtained by Fourier transforming the actual image, the image processing section carries out a process of replacing a luminance signal of the frequency image with a background value on pixels arranged in the first direction at a second frequency after the Fourier transformation and corresponding to the first period.

5. The charged particle beam apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a user interface for changeably setting the number of partitioned regions and an artifact removing region at least in the second direction.

6. The charged particle beam apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a Fourier transforming section that Fourier transforms an actual image data; and

an inverse Fourier transforming section that subjects a frequency image to inverse Fourier transformation.

7. A method of operating

a charged particle beam apparatus, the method comprising:

scanning a sample two-dimensionally, in first and second directions, with a charged particle beam so as to display an image of the scanned region with a signal based on a charged particle beam from the sample detected by the scanning, wherein the scanning employs a partitioning and interlacing method in which scanning in the first direction is performed for partitioned regions sequentially in a skipping manner;

defining the partitioned regions by partitioning a region to be scanned, in the second direction that is different from the first direction, into a plurality of regions; and

carrying out image processing for removing an artifact that is attributable to the scanning;

wherein the artifact is removed by a processing based on a frequency of the artifact that is pre-evaluated according to the size of the partitioned regions in the second direction.