TWI407260B - Lithography system, sensor and measuring method - Google Patents

Abstract

Lithography system, sensor and method for measuring properties of a massive amount of charged particle beams of a charged particle beam system, in particular a direct write lithography system, in which the charged particle beams are converted into light beams by using a converter element, using an array of light sensitive detectors such as diodes, CCD or CMOS devices, located in line with said converter element, for detecting said light beams, electronically reading out resulting signals from said detectors after exposure thereof by said light beams, utilising said signals for determining values for one or more beam properties, thereby using an automated electronic calculator, and electronically adapting the charged particle system so as to correct for out of specification range values for all or a number of said charged particle beams, each for one or more properties,; based on said calculated property values.

Description

Lithography system, sensor and measurement method

The present invention relates to a multiple particle beam lithography system, a sensor, and a method.

Such lithography systems typically operate according to a method for transferring a pattern onto the surface of a target, and therefore, typically use a so-called particle beam device to produce the plurality of charged particle beams. The particle beams can be scanned in one or more directions by an electronic controller. The plurality of particle beams (hereinafter also referred to as write beams) are corrected by a sensor. The methods generally employed by such lithography systems include the steps of generating a plurality of write beams for writing the pattern onto the surface of the object, wherein the target is typically a wafer or reticle. Preferably, a write beam is composed of an electron beam emitted from a write beam source. For example, the write beam source may include a cathode and may be written by the beam shaping member (eg, by a plurality An array of apertures is added to supplement its function for converting a beam of particles emitted by the write beam source into a plurality of smaller diameter bundles. In addition, such known lithography systems may also be provided with calibration members for guiding a source beam or a set of generated write beams to be parallel to one another.

In this known method, each write beam is separately deflected when the pattern is written onto the surface of the object to interfere with the writing process. For example, this is accomplished by an array of a plurality of electrostatic deflectors and visors that pass through the array via the system. In particular in the case of the multiple write beam system according to the invention, such deflecting sheets will have so-called modulation information generated by the transmitting means. This portion of the lithography system for writing patterns on a wafer or reticle is hereinafter referred to as a particle beam device. A more detailed information of the particle beam apparatus and the lithography system is known, for example, from the patent publication WO2004038509, which is incorporated herein by reference.

To further point out the characteristics of electron beam lithography discussed in this paper, its application will be based on high resolution applications. Today's applications enable imaging of patterns with critical dimensions below the 100 nm of the pattern size. Specifically, in this view, the multiple beam system relates to a so-called multiple particle beam system, for example, which includes several number of write beams of the order of 10,000 or more. In this view, a typical application currently proposed by the applicant in this case includes 13,000 write bundles. However, further development will focus on lithography appliances with a beam count of one million, which systems hope to use a theoretically identical type of sensor.

Such exposure lithography systems are only commercially useful when at least the position of all of the electron beams can be precisely controlled. However, due to various conditions (such as manufacturing tolerances and thermal drift), a write beam produced in a writing device of a lithography system can easily produce one or more errors that make it impossible to write. This error may be a positioning error relative to a given grid. A particle beam device and such erroneous characteristics of the lithography system can severely affect the quality of the pattern to be written. The position of an electron beam, which is again located near the surface to be exposed, must be known within a distance of a few nanometers and should be correctable. In known lithography systems, this intelligence is established by frequently correcting the position of the particle beam.

In addition to the specific features described above, other features of a write beam must also be known quickly and accurately in multiple instances during operation of the particle beam apparatus (especially during writing of a wafer). In order to be able to adjust the writing process of a wafer as early as possible, thereby increasing the number and chance of correctly written wafers or increasing the yield.

The known calibration method generally comprises at least three steps: a measuring step in which the position of the electron beam is measured; a calculating step in which the measured position of the electron beam and the electron beam are a comparison of the positions of the locations; and a compensation step in which the difference between the measured position and the determined position is compensated for, the compensation may be in the software of the lithography system or its electron beam apparatus or Implemented in hardware.

Such known measurement or correction system features are characterized by relatively low throughput (eg, only one portion of a wafer can be patterned in an hour), or characterized by a number of writes compared to a multi-particle beam system. The relatively limited electron beam lithography apparatus imposes almost no restrictions. For a maskless system with a high total throughput or a multi-particle beam system with the emphasis of the present invention, such known calibration systems would have a high-capacity and high total throughput of the maskless micro The shadow system constitutes a limiting factor.

With such known methods, a charged particle beam system (e.g., an electron beam based system) must be calibrated very many times. This is acceptable for a single beam or a number of lithography systems; this is a problem if 13000 or more particle beams are continuously calibrated. In this case, the time required for the correction may be much longer than the time required to actually process a field on a wafer. Therefore, in order to increase the throughput of the known lithography system, and in accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the calibration procedure should be substantially accelerated.

Several correction methods for electron beam lithography systems are known in the art. Most of the tags are located on or in the wafer platform or both. Then, a sensor detects or locates a beam. The sensor is a charged particle sensor that measures the amount of secondary or reflected electrons created by the mark.

U.S. Patent No. 5,929,454 provides an example of a method of using a charged particle sensor that incorporates a plurality of charged particle beams. The patent discloses a method for detecting the position of a plurality of electron beams using a mark on the wafer or platform. The mark is a parallel straight line pattern and is used to make several measurements. All measurements are performed by detecting secondary or reflected electrons from the aligned marks at the time of scanning. The position of the alignment mark depends on the amount of displacement of the electron beams and the detection result. The advantage of this electronic detector is that it can quickly measure any primary or secondary electrons. However, its volume is relatively large and falls within the range of millimeters, so it is not suitable for multiple charged particle beams (for example, 13,000 channels). Even more of the particle beam) in the lithography system. In the latter lithography system, the typical pitch level between the particle beams is one tenth of a millimeter. For example, in the current system of 13,000 particle beams, the pitch is typically 150 μm. In addition to the above volume characteristics, the known sensor and correction system is also very expensive, and it is not even possible to correct a large number of charged particle beams qualitatively and quickly enough.

There are other problems in a multiple electron beam lithography system. For example, adjacent electron beams should not affect the accuracy of the position detection. In addition, the known methods and systems are also unclear how to perform data acquisition and data processing for all write beams within a reasonable time limit (i.e., much less than the time required to write a wafer). . Since there is an additional requirement that the entire particle beam apparatus must be frequently corrected during the process of writing a wafer (at least a very desirable feature that is common in the art), it is possible to monitor and timely compensate for the writing as described above. The in-beam dynamic drift, so the latter problem will be particularly serious. This type of treatment avoids excessive loss of processed wafers and avoids excessive loss of efficacy by an expensive machine.

The present invention solves the above problem of rapidly detecting the characteristics of charged particle beams of a multi-particle beam by using a conversion element such as a fluorescent screen or a material doped with YAG (yttrium aluminum garnet). The charged particle beam is converted into a light beam; the light beam is then detected by an array of a plurality of photosensitive detectors (such as a diode, CCD or CMOS device) or a camera; and then electronically read out The signal of the camera reads the signals of the units or detectors in the camera. In one embodiment, the signals in the camera (ie, the signals of their units or detectors) are read out in a single operation, which may be continuously read (preferably at a high clock rate). The location is read) or read in parallel (ie, read simultaneously). The signals are read after the exposure time preset period and are used to determine the value of one or more beam characteristics by an automated computer. The calculated characteristic values can be used to correct all or several of the write beams. This correction can be implemented by electronically modifying the pattern data to take into account the actual beam characteristics and/or can be implemented by affecting the write beam itself. According to a preferred embodiment, the correction is performed separately on the software by modifying the pattern data.

The performance of such photodetectors is generally poor in response, as light sensitive sensors such as CCDs (charge coupled devices) react very slowly. However, an advantage of the present invention is that although the reaction is rather slow, the surprising sensor composition according to the present invention can achieve relatively very fast speeds compared to the use of one or several known electron beam detectors. Sensor. In this view, the advantageous use is because a large number of photodetectors can be read out in a single operation, in a continuous manner (preferably at a high clock rate) or simultaneously. For the unit). In the sensor according to the invention, it is preferred to read all of the photodetectors simultaneously. Furthermore, the sensor structure of the present invention, especially consisting of an array of a plurality of photodetectors, is capable of measuring very small spacings in multiple beams without the need to perform excessively in the platform portion of a lithography system. Structural measurement.

The latter characteristic of measuring the optical signal (ie photon) itself can be known from the field of view of the digital camera, in which at least a plurality of photodetectors are also electronically substantially simultaneously read out. A further advantage of the beam sensor according to the invention can be achieved very cost-effectively by using such an array of a plurality of detectors. The purpose of the measurement according to the invention is to determine the position of the write beam and to determine if they are within specifications. The measurement operation is based on timing and is implemented under one of the following conditions: a write beam is continuously turned on; or the write beam is set to on. Two types of measurements can be implemented in combination to determine the values of the different beam characteristics presented below. When performing the measurement according to the invention, a so-called point spread function with respect to each write beam is determined. The rise and fall times of a write beam are not directly measured and are inferred from this function.

It is worth noting that the concept of converting charged particle beams into beams can also be known from another technical field, namely the field of electron microscopy. The object of this technical field is accuracy, not speed, which is known per se to convert an electron beam into light using a conversion element. This conversion element is usually realized by a so-called YAG (yttrium aluminum garnet) screen, but a fluorescent screen can also be used. The photons generated by this conversion are then received by a so-called photomultiplier to obtain an amplified electrical signal. This photoelectric conversion is implemented by a single conversion unit.

In the latter aspect, the features of the present invention also include solving the problem caused by the fact that the size of a write beam is theoretically smaller than the resolution of a known sensor. In addition, when scanning a mark, the known detector will be larger than the spacing between the two write beams of the currently improved lithography system, so if the known sensor is used, the signal of the complex write beam is used. Will overlap. With regard to further problems related to the size of the known detector and the current solution, it should be noted that the scanning detection system (for use in the multiple beam) according to the present invention can generally be applied to 150 μm (micron) Within the spacing. In this view, the diameter of a write beam is typically less than 45 nm (nano). Conversely, the present invention achieves a method, system, and sensor for which the particle beam spot size of a charged particle beam will be less than the resolution of the conversion element. The above objectives can be achieved by measuring the intensity values of a beam to determine the characteristics of the beams, especially in combination with a knife edge, as exemplified in the description of each figure. This decision operation is performed based on a plurality of signals generated by a stepping process of a charged particle beam that scans a mark or barrier element in one direction at a time.

Furthermore, the optical conversion method according to the present invention can use a plurality of very inexpensive photosensitive detectors (i.e., an array composed of them) such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) and a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor) device. These photodetectors convert light into intensity, usually based on electrons, while the advantages are broadly practical, known as a technology, and cost effective. Their very small form factor means very high pixel resolution. In other words, the large number of charged particle beams can be sensed simultaneously after being converted into a light beam. Consistent with this advantage, such individual light or pixel sensors will be read at least substantially simultaneously in a single operation, which may be read continuously (preferably at a high clock rate) Out), or read out at the same time. An example of this feature can be found in the application of such sensors to digital cameras.

By utilizing at least substantially simultaneous readout and conversion of charged particles into light, a multi-charged particle beam device can be calibrated using a light sensor that is slower than the known charged particle sensor described above. Compared with the use of charged particle sensors, it has the advantages of both fast and low cost, completely eliminating the need for excessive space and achieving the resolution required for multiple particle beam systems. Although the number of components of the new sensor and the physical conversion method used therein make it more complicated, the new sensor, calibration method, and lithography system can calibrate a multi-charged particle beam device in a very economical manner. .

In a sensor according to the present invention, the accumulated charge or intensity at each cell is individually read out at a predetermined time. In a CCD device, the charge induced in the photosensitive element due to the illumination thereof is typically transmitted across the wafer and read at one of the corners of an array. A type of digital converter converts the value of each pixel into a digit value. In CMOS devices, there are typically a number of transistors at each pixel that amplify and move the charge, which is used to transfer the charge to a readout of the device.

An advantageous feature of the present invention over known charged particle beam device sensors is that, in addition to using scattered electrons or secondary electrons, the new sensor is capable of directly measuring one or more write beams, That is, the sensor can be placed directly at the projection of the write beam (i.e., in the surface area of a wafer), which has significant spatial advantages in terms of the design of the particle beam device.

A further advantage of the system according to the invention is that, despite its economics, it is possible not only to determine the position of the particle beam apparatus during its single measurement, but also to be able to determine a plurality of characteristics of the particle beam apparatus, thus increasing the The efficiency of both the new sensor and the particle beam instrument to be calibrated. The above plurality of characteristics include: the position of the particle beam, the size of the particle beam spot and the beam current, and a shielding element that serves as a common sharing device for such particle beam devices, and the time delay in operation thereof.

The invention further relates to partially blocking a particle beam sent to the sensor by a barrier element having a blade, so that the particle beam created on the sensor can be measured in an advantageous and effective manner. The maximum size of the particle beam spot. In fact, the particle beam will be scanned in a stepwise manner relative to the blade relative to the blade, and will be turned on and off at predetermined time intervals depending on the situation, thereby producing a limited amount of data. In order to facilitate the use of straight line fitting software to infer the characteristics of each beam. In accordance with the present invention, this step scan can be performed one or more times, preferably at an incremental time interval each time. The beam characteristics are determined in accordance with a set of signals obtained when the particle beam blocking element (ie, the marker and the charged particle beam) move relative to each other, such that a transducer relative to the transducer in the sensor can be used Know the barrier element contained in the location.

Preferably, a particle beam is stepped through the blade blocker or marker in at least three directions to facilitate an elliptical fitting effect. A mark is preferably a hexagonal shape to facilitate optimization of the sensing time by step scanning and detection in one of the directions in the back and forth direction of a scanning motion. According to the invention, it is technically and economically advantageous to arrange this marking at a known position relative to the sensor, in particular to integrate it structurally, that is, to place it in the At the top of the sensor (ie the surface of the sensor).

However, for some measurements, at least for the measurement write beam current, a write beam will be directed to a location on the surface of the sensor that will not be intercepted by the beam barrier mark.

Adjusting the system based on such automatically derived beam characteristic values is performed by at least one of the following methods: electronically correcting electronic data of a pattern to be imaged by the charged particle beam system, particularly control data; Correcting the line width; and a position correcting member that electronically affects the particle beam system for modifying the position of one or more charged particle beams, particularly by introducing a time delay.

Particularly in the sensor according to the invention (without precluding a CMOS device application), a beam adjuster (such as a fiber array or a lens system) can be integrated between the converter and the receptor. It is used for optical adjustment, that is, to enhance or attenuate the image of an outgoing beam, thereby optimizing the internally generated beam for the photoreceptor.

In a calibration system in accordance with the present invention, the values of the above features are known from a multi-beam sensor by a computing unit. According to the present invention, the correction signal generated by the unit can be used to affect the beam device; or it can be used to affect an image pattern stored in a computer component, wherein the pattern actually constitutes a command basis of the particle beam device. .

Due to the size of the new sensor, it can be placed and placed in a plurality of positions in a bundle of appliances in accordance with the present invention. In this way, the correction frequency can be increased without wasting the need to significantly move the target (ie, the wafer, especially one and its associated sensor) to position it correctly with respect to the particle beam device in use. Valuable operating time.

In a further detail of the method and lithography system according to the invention, the charged particle beam system (at least its particle beam generating portion) is provided with an optical sensor. The detector for detecting particle beam characteristics (especially the pattern of the blocking element thereon) is used to optically detect the position of the system relative to a separate movable platform. Used to hold a target surface and include the detector.

Where appropriate, the various points and features described and illustrated in this specification can be applied individually. These individual opinions, especially the opinions and characteristics mentioned in the attached scope of the patent application, can be the patent application division case in this case.

The present invention provides a lithography system design equipped with an electron beam alignment sensor that is adapted to transfer patterns of today's needs (e.g., 45 nm or less) at a rate of 10 wafers per wafer or more. The present invention comprises a novel sensor for detecting a lithography system (for example, the lithography system itself is known from the application WO 04/038509) or within a multi-particle beam inspection apparatus. The characteristics of a projected charged particle beam (such as an electron beam). The novel sensor includes a scintillator in combination with a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) (also referred to as a camera), which is referred to herein as a so-called YAG (yttrium aluminum garnet) material. The YAG screen used herein is a garnet doped with Ce. Each of the characteristics of a charged particle beam is obtained by measuring the signal generated in the sensor by the automatic electronic measuring unit and the calculating unit when moving a charged particle beam with respect to a sensor. In the system of the present invention, a write beam is typically moved relative to the sensor by a stepwise movement within a write beam device, typically over a range of distances. Between 100 nm and 2.5 μm. The stepping is performed in the particle beam apparatus by affecting the electric field on the two deflecting sheets, or a piece of deflecting sheet and an electric field on a wafer platform. A particle beam can thereby be scanned in three different directions. During this scan, a particle beam barrier equipped with a so-called blade will remain at a known location between the particle beam generating instrument of the system and the sensor. In an advantageous embodiment of the novel sensor, the barrier member is attached to the surface of the sensor.

The known location of the barrier is obtained by at least one of a set of means, and preferably is obtained by a combination of all of the means, wherein the means include: for accurately positioning, correcting the system well Manufacturing practice of performing measurements within the machine when the machine is installed and preferably performing measurements at regular time intervals (much greater than the interval at which measurements are performed during a write operation on a wafer); and optically determining The position of the sensor and the wafer relative to the particle beam instrument. Regarding the latter, the special shape of the sensor block is advantageous for use in the present invention. Using a known mark on a wafer (especially an optically detectable mark) and the mark on the sensor, the wafer can be used to know the sense using an optical measurement system known per se. The position of the detector. After determining the position of the plurality of write beams relative to the sensor according to the present invention in a manner explained below, the position of the write beams relative to the wafer can be known. In order to improve the accuracy of the measurement, a further means comprises manufacturing a barrier that is as small as possible and can be incorporated into a layer of low thermal expansion coefficient (such as glass, for example, "zero dur" glass) in the sensor. . In a preferred embodiment of the invention, each of the write beams can be positioned at the sense of accuracy achieved in accordance with the present invention and utilizing the known position of the write beam relative to the sensor Above the single related marker on the detector.

With the system, sensor, and method according to the present invention, the present invention provides a framework for detecting a function of a particle beam appliance shutter characteristic known per se, any time delay thereof, and the generation of the particle beam apparatus The position, current, and particle beam spot size of all particle beams. The aforementioned characteristics of all particle beams in a multi-particle beam device can now be detected in a very short period of time (for example within one minute). As will be explained hereinafter, the time delay of a write beam and the positioning error can be measured by using different measurement methods and without using a blade. In this regard, time delay refers to the delay between the instant of an "on" or "off" command to the particle beam appliance and its occurrence at the wafer (especially the sensor layer).

Figure 1 shows a system portion and a method incorporating a sensor S in accordance with the present invention. When a charged particle beam 4 is irradiated on the sensor S, specifically, it is irradiated on its conversion element 1, the converter 1 emits a light beam 5, which is received by the camera 2, that is, at least Received by a photon acceptor 2. After a predetermined time controlled by an electronic system timer C1, the photon acceptor (ie, individual cells) is read in a conventional manner and the data is sent to a computing unit in the system. Cu. The computing unit determines the offset from a predetermined particle beam characteristic (e.g., position and intensity) value and provides a modified value Cor to a control member CM to control the charged particle beam device to be corrected. This means that either or both of the memory storage material used to generate a pattern and the particle beam apparatus are automatically adjusted by the control member. Thus, in order to measure various characteristics of a charged particle beam (e.g., an electron beam) in a multiple charged particle beam system, in a preferred embodiment, a plurality of writes covering the converter (especially the YAG screen) are utilized. A so-called blade scan is applied to the beam barrier mark 6, and the pattern produced by this scan is imaged from the YAG screen onto a camera, preferably onto a CCD camera.

2, 3, and 4 are schematic views of an embodiment of the present invention. In addition to the beam current and the X and Y positions of a particle beam, it is also possible to detect the size of an otherwise charged particle beam in the x and y directions. The conversion member 1 is placed on the top end of the photon receiving member 2. Preferably, a mark 6 (referred to as the first exemplary mark 6 in FIG. 2) containing a blade is located in the optical path of the charged particle beam 4 in the immediate vicinity of the front of the conversion member 1. As shown in the figure, the mark 6 can be and is optimally disposed directly on the top end of the conversion member 1. However, in accordance with the present invention, the indicia 6 can also be disposed at a known location remote from the conversion member 1, for example, on a separate carrier that allows charged particles to pass through. In a preferred embodiment, when a YAG screen is fixed on the top end of the sensor, the YAG screen can also be incorporated on the carrier, thereby allowing the particle beam to be reduced. The thickness of the barrier material. In this example, the receiving component 2 is composed of a plurality of grid cells 3 (ie, a group of grid cells 3), specifically consisting of sixteen cells 3, which are arranged A square frame conforming to the preferred embodiment. Moreover, in accordance with the basic principles set forth herein, the framework can also be embodied in a single unit 3.

Although not shown in FIG. 2 for clarity, in the path of an electron beam in the sensor, the sensor further includes a thin layer for blocking background light, for example, the thickness ranges from 30 to 80 nm. An aluminum layer is disposed between a mark 6 or a charged particle barrier layer of the sensors and the converter. The background light blocking layer enhances the quality of the sensor by preventing background light from interfering with light generated by the converter (ie, a write beam).

In accordance with the present invention, the particle beam barrier layer or indicia 6 should be thick enough to adequately block an incident charged particle beam and, on the other hand, should be thin enough to minimize out-of-focus and edge roughness effects. Thus, a mark 6 will consist of a heavy metal, preferably a tungsten-like material, typically having a thickness ranging between 50 and 500 nm.

According to Figures 3 and 4, the marking 6 in the embodiment consists of two spatially separated parts 6B1 and 6B2, and in the drawing shows a first blade which is aligned perpendicular to the direction 7 in the scanning direction 7. E1, and two subsequent blades E2 and E3, respectively, which are oriented differently from the direction 7 as viewed from the top view. Since there is at least one such acute angle, only one scanning direction 7 is required to measure the particle beam spot position. Since the two sharp edges E2 and E3 which are aligned to each other at different angles are incorporated, the measurement effect can be improved without greatly increasing the required scanning time. Another sensor embodiment is disclosed in Figure 6, which includes a mark 6C and requires more scan time, but provides very superior signal quality.

Figure 5 shows a possible result of scanning in the vertical direction on one of the edges of the exemplary mark 6B shown in Figure 4, which is shown after a number of stages t being detected. Count value CI. Before reaching the left edge E1 of the exemplary mark 6, the photon receiving member 2 calculates the number of photons in the entire beam, that is, a constant photon number CI is detected per unit time. When the charged particle beam 4 is moved to the right in the direction 7, the right side touches the left edge E1 of the mark 6 at the stage tA, and a small amount of electrons are converted, so that the photon receiving member 2 detects a smaller amount. Photon. By comparing the expected phase of arrival to the left edge E1, the actual position of the charged particle beam 4 in the first direction can be determined in accordance with the present invention. As the charged particle beam 4 moves further in this direction 7, fewer and fewer photons are detected. Finally, the amount of photons detected at stage tB will reach a minimum. The charged particle beam 4 will now be completely blocked by the mark 6B. The scan length corresponding to phase tB and phase tA is the dimension measurement of the particle beam 4 in the first direction 7. The position at the intermediate value between the high level and the low level where the intensity is located between the edges E1 to E3 is regarded as the position of the particle beam. Moving in the first direction 7, the particle beam will pass through the next edge E2, the alignment of which is not perpendicular to the first direction 7. Due to the alignment of the second edge E2, the write beam 4 will arrive at the edge E2 at a different stage tC, looking at its direction perpendicular to the first direction on the sensor plane (and the plane of the plan view). Depending on the location. The photon receiving member 2 detects more and more photons as it continues to move in the first direction 7. Thus, in the embodiment shown in the figures, positional measurements can be made in multiple directions by single direction scanning. However, one possible disadvantage of this detector and method is caused by the amount of data required to measure the characteristics of the write beam. However, with the evolution of computing technology, the current shortcomings are expected to disappear.

In order to perform sufficient scanning to eliminate the so-called measurement noise in the method and system of the present invention by the averaging method, a fast camera having a binning function can be used. A preset minimum number of scans must be implemented in order to determine the position of the particle beam with the accuracy of the demand. With this type of detector, there is no need for dead angles, and both CCD cameras and CMOS cameras are equally suitable. The actual application of either of these cameras is based on the accuracy of the camera available, the binning capability, and the very important readout rate and the number of possible frames per second.

According to a preferred embodiment, the use of a blade scan and a suitable mark 6 not only determines the position and current of a single write beam, but also determines the particle beam spot size in two or three directions. By scanning on the mark 6B, the measurement signal will be as shown in FIG. 5; if the mark 6C in FIG. 6 is applied, the measurement signal will be as shown in FIG. The position and standard deviation (sigma) of the Gaussian beam can be obtained from the rise and fall of a signal. The beam current is obtained from the maximum signal. The one shown in Figure 6 is a possible and currently preferred mark 6. In accordance with the present invention, with these blade scans, all particle beam spot positions, spot sizes, point currents, and time delays, as well as the function of the shutter, can be measured as the primary characteristics of the individual write beam.

One characteristic that can be advantageously measured in accordance with the details of the present invention is relative to the particle beam position of the shading information grid. That is, the actual particle beam position corresponding to a masking signal. The detected write beam displacement further divides the actual physical displacement of the write beam and the relative time delay of a masking signal in accordance with an internal timer C1 in the lithography system according to the present invention, wherein the charged particle beam It is turned on and off by a shielding member that acts on an electronic (shadow) signal. Both are corrected for correcting a single particle beam.

The easiest way to correct this position and timing error is to measure all displacements at once. Another aspect of the invention is to measure the total displacement at a time. This operation is performed by masking the write beam. A write beam 4 is scanned on the sensor S and turned on when it is in a predetermined layout position. The write beam 4 will remain on for a predetermined period of time. The number of electrons required to perform the measurement is obtained by performing multiple scans on the detector 6. Therefore, the measurement method is advantageous for reducing noise, and the particle beam spot of the write beam 4 on the sensor S can be obtained by blocking the particle beam 4 in the particle beam device for generating the particle beam 4, physical displacement. Both time delay and time delay can be measured. In another measurement, the advantage is that the particle beam 4 is turned on and off several times at a plurality of different locations.

In addition to the foregoing embodiments, it is apparent that various embodiments within the scope of the invention may be further developed. An example of this is shown in Figure 6, which shows a top surface of a sensor according to the present invention showing a plurality of barrier elements 6 having the same alignment, which is represented by 6C. The barrier elements comprise at least three sharp edges C1, C2, C3 that are at an angle of 120 degrees to each other. In accordance with the present invention, the measured particle beam spot characteristics can be fitted to an elliptical shape. Alternatively, an angle of 60 degrees can also be used to form an equilateral triangle. In this manner, it is preferred that the scanning be performed in at least three directions. However, in further details of the invention, the barrier element 6C will have an angle greater than 90 degrees. According to the basic concept of the present invention, the opportunity for a projected focused beam to be completely cut by the mark can be optimized by this means. In other words, a particle beam spot that is scanned on one edge of the mark to interrupt the measurement signal is minimized. Secondly, with an angle greater than 90 degrees, the blade scan can still be performed in more than two directions, thereby improving the ability to determine the shape and size of the particle beam spot. The best marking is a regular hexagonal shape comprising two sets of sharp edges C1, C2, C3. In this way, the two features previously described are integrated into the tag, and the tag also provides the possibility to collect a signal in the forward and backward movement.

In further detail of the preferred sensor, for each particle beam to be corrected, a plurality of such preferred hexagonal shapes are included on the surface of a sensor. In this way, the opportunity to scan at the correct location can be improved and the measurement quality of multiple independent sharp edges in one direction can be improved. In a method of using such a sensor, it is preferred to perform scanning in a plurality of directions D1 to D3 shown in the drawing, each of the directions D1 to D3 being perpendicular to the sharpness. One of the edges C1 to C3. All marks on the surface of the sensor have the same spatial alignment. Preferably, they are arranged such that when a charged particle beam is scanned in a particular direction perpendicular to an edge of a mark, regardless of the position of the scanned particle beam relative to the sensor, Encountered an edge with a corresponding alignment. In other words, the edges of the different marks with corresponding alignments when moving the position will engage each other. In this way, a scanned particle beam will be in the vicinity of its opened position, and it will surely encounter a blade that is aligned in the same direction, that is, close to adjacent marks, that is, their blades will be in the parallel direction. Engage. These scanning directions D1, D2, or D3 of a particle beam 4 may occupy a width of about 2.5 μm on the target surface area. In other words, the mutual position between the sensor (i.e., the indicia thereon) and the particle beam device will cause one chance to hit a blade when scanning in one of the directions. Advantageously, the edge of the blade is measured several times, and the maximum expected particle beam spot width is estimated to be in the range of 1 to 6 times the width; if it is an expected circular particle beam shape, it is estimated The diameter is in the range of 1 to 6 times. In terms of the number of marks per write beam, a ratio of a plurality of marks per write beam can be used to increase the chance of quickly hitting a blade within the scan range when scanning a charged particle beam. However, in an embodiment in accordance with the present invention, a faster result can be achieved when applying a ratio of one mark per particle beam, which ratio has the advantage that the absolute position of a particle beam can be easily determined. In this example using only 13,000 write beams (typically having a particle beam spot size of 45 nm), the typical width of a blade C1 to C3 is about 270 nm, which in this example is increased to 300 nm.

Figure 7 uses a plurality of bullet points 8 to provide an exemplary set of measurement data (e.g., a plurality of edges C1) for performing at least one scan on a plurality of sharp edges in one of the directions in a manner corresponding to Figure 5, and fitting the trajectory Line 9 is mathematically inferred from the set of measurements. Since the speed of the present sensor for measuring multiple write beams is very slow, the measurement frequency used in microscopy can be very low. The frequency level in which the measurement is implemented in the latter is kHz, and the frequency level in which the measurement is performed in this example is Hz, or when a substantially continuous signal is obtained, the measurement system is separated from the basic concept, and as long as the fitting is performed, only a limited number of times are implemented. Measurements (e.g., 6 readings per second) are sufficient, and a substantial real trajectory is not required to achieve the purpose of inferring the characteristics of the particle beam apparatus described above. For example, in the latter, the slope of the fitted trajectory 9 represents the particle beam spot size in the scanning direction. With the sensor designed by the present invention, in most cases, detecting the characteristic value of a multiple write beam to be corrected will be much faster than repositioning the known, very fast light unit and the blade. Sensors, as seen in microscopy, a multi-particle beam device must be implemented on a particle-by-particle beam basis. From the obtained signal, in addition to the time delay information, the rise time and the fall time can be inferred, and the beam current of a write beam can also be inferred.

Of course, sharp edge scanning can also be performed in more than three directions (ie, in multiple directions) using various other shapes than those described above. However, in terms of cost, the accuracy of the particle beam spot size and shape determined is less considered, and the three scanning directions are considered to be a reasonable number of scanning directions. Therefore, the measurement is actually performed by stepping on the sensor instead of scanning. During a step movement, the particle beam is turned on when a particle beam is positioned at its intended position relative to the sensor. From the deviation of the inferred signal from the expected signal, the particle beam point position error and the timing error of the particle beam device shutter can be inferred. According to the present invention, when a particle beam spot created on a sensor beam is not positioned above a portion blocked by a mark, the particle beam is turned on.

Figure 8 is a plan view showing a wafer included in a lithography system in accordance with the present invention. To simplify the drawing, a number of fields F have been omitted from this figure. Due to the substantial reduction in the cost of the sensor according to the present invention, it is shown that a plurality of sensors 11 can be placed adjacent to the wafer location 10 within the lithography system in accordance with the present invention. For example, a sensor can be placed together at the beginning position, as shown in the example of FIG. 12, at the upper left of the wafer position 10. The latter sensors are dispersed at a regular distance on a track 13 of a particle beam projector 12 at a regular distance in accordance with the number of fields F. The track 13 is partially shown by only a few arrows in the figure. The sensors are disposed adjacent to a wafer 10 in the lithography system to minimize the distance traveled by the particle beam apparatus. In the illustrated example, the sensor 11 is placed after every 5 or 6 fields F in a wafer. After the particle beam apparatus has disposed the last group of fields F, it moves to the initial position (this is the upper left in the figure) and the wafer is unloaded from the system.

With regard to the different types of measurements facilitated by the sensors of the present invention and implemented in the method of the present invention, it should be noted that for current measurements of a write beam, the particle beams will be placed at The detector is above a YAG region and the current is measured using a continuous particle beam to turn on the measurement operation. A number of measurements (of which the rating is 10 to 20) will be implemented and the average current will be determined from the measurements. With the sensor of the present invention, all 13,000 particle beam operations can be completed in less than one second. The current variation between the particle beams can be determined from the generated data. The time required for this current (1nA) measurement is typically 160μS. However, a CCD can usually be filled within 15 μs. Therefore, several measurements are typically performed, typically about 10 to 15 times, and the average current is measured from the measurements. For all particle beams, this job can be completed in less than a second. From this data, the current variation between the particle beams can also be determined. Based on the current measurement, the particle beam instrument system can determine whether the average current of the effective particle beams is within specifications. If not, the set values of the write beam source will be changed until a qualified measurement result is reached; if the set value cannot be changed, the system will determine whether the current is expected to remain unchanged or judged in subsequent exposures. Whether to replace the write beam source. The pulse duration variation can be measured by performing a certain time switching current measurement using a preset on/off ratio of a projection beam.

As mentioned above, in terms of particle beam position, DC (direct current) phase noise, and point spread function of common Gaussian distribution point strength, two alternative measurement methods have been developed including rise and fall times. This will be discussed in further detail below: one of the measurements is to keep the particle beam on continuously; the other is to open the particle beam only at regular intervals. By having the particle beam continuously open, the position of the particle beam in one direction and the point spread function (PSF) of the Gaussian distribution can be determined. By timing scanning, the scanned PSF (including the rise or fall time) and the offset of the scanned beam position (including DC phase noise) can be measured.

For this continuous measurement, the beam deflection can be utilized to perform step deflection. It determines the position of the blade relative to the deflector voltage to measure the change in beam position relative to its nominal position. If the exact position of the edge relative to the wafer platform position is now known, the exact particle beam position can be determined. One of the measurement trajectories represents the integrated particle beam spot. In addition to the Gaussian beam curve, this trajectory also represents the integral of the Gaussian function. It can be used to fit the measurement to a progressive Gaussian. A PSF can be determined from the fitted Gaussian. If it is determined that the shape of the particle beam spot is not Gaussian, then a more precise one-time determination must be performed to determine the particle beam spot shape. These measurements are then fitted to the previously measured particle beam spot shape.

The left-hand diagram in Figure 9 shows a continuous measurement of the intensity A/m discussed above and a Gaussian distribution, also referred to as a point shape, by a particle beam 4 in a sensor according to the invention. Created on S, or created by a particle beam 4 on another object (such as a wafer). The figure on the right hand side is a relationship diagram of the CCD signal readout value Sccd of the two write beams Bm and Bn with respect to a particle beam deflection, wherein the deflection of the particle beam is in the write beam device. The applied deflection voltage Vd is measured. Each measurement reflected on the right hand side corresponds to a region below the Gaussian, integrating from infinity to a specific point on the particle beam point, which represents the position of the blade. Therefore, it can be seen from the figure that the trajectory in the right-hand relationship diagram (which is derived from the measurement data) represents an integral Gaussian. In this example, the particle beam apparatus has 13,000 write beams, and the deflection range for determining the position of a particle beam is set at 300 nm, and the blade is placed at a nominal origin position. In this way it is ensured that a beam of particles with a maximum displacement of about 100 nm will cross the relevant blade. In order to set a measured step movement size, the minimum number of points required to fit a Gaussian curve must be deviated. The time required to measure each point depends on the screen read speed, which sets the time for each scan.

Figures 10 and 11 show a timing measurement which is an alternative to the foregoing and is a preferred measurement method. With the timing measurement method, the number of points for a single scan is greatly reduced. Figure 10 shows the so-called timing blade principle shown in the figure, which graphically shows the necessary "open" position of a blade and a group of individual write beams B1 to B3. "Positioning" a write beam "on" is achieved by a time delay per channel, which can be taken from the previous exposure and provided within the system, preferably by the particle beam device, explicitly Said to be achieved by its control unit. In Fig. 11, the double arrow 14 represents the time delay, and the square represents the period in which the particle beam is set to the "on" mode. The latter is carried out by the screening system of the particle beam apparatus and indicates the presence of a particle beam spot on the sensor. For a write beam measurement, this paper assumes that the write beam does not move violently (relative to the previous measured travel distance of less than 10 nm), so the time delay per channel of the previous exposure can be used. Therefore, due to the change in the position of the DC phase particle beam, the measurement result is the positional shift B1, S1 to B1, S5 of the scan write beam B1 with respect to the previous measurement. In addition, the PSF measured using this method also includes a rise or fall time. To perform this measurement and take at least five data points near the blade, different scans must be performed. The width of the particle beam on sequence can only cover a single blade. The displacement of the particle beam on position can be taken from the data system or by adjusting the average deflection voltage.

In addition to the foregoing, alternative descriptions of the invention are defined below. It is claimed herein that the present invention relates to a sensor for correcting the relative position and correctness of a plurality of charged particle beams. The apparatus or particle beam apparatus includes a set of charged particle detectors having a known relative position. The charged particle detector has a detection area containing a finite number of grid elements. The finite number of grid cells is at least equal to four. The charged particle detectors are firmly attached to each other. The correctness of a write beam is determined by the control unit of the system according to the invention, which determines all measured values of the set according to a preset value of a set of characteristics that will be written to the beam sensor (ie each Whether the value of an individual characteristic falls within the preset range defined for each feature.

Furthermore, the apparatus further includes a computing unit for determining a design position of the plurality of charged particle beams and a charged particle detector by the known relative position between the set of charged particle detectors The difference between the detected positions of the plurality of charged particle beams; and calculating the correction value to correct the measured difference. The device is also tuned to adjust individual image patterns of a single bundle in accordance with calculations by the computing unit. As such, the device will be adjusted to adjust the CD (critical distance) control in the same manner. All of the aforementioned types of adjustments can be performed in the same device as necessary.

The position correcting member of the device may further include a plurality of electrostatic deflecting sheets. The charged particle detector may include: a conversion member for converting a measured charged particle into at least one photon; and a photon receiving member disposed on the optical path behind the conversion member for detecting the Converting at least one photon created by the member.

The conversion member may include a flat plate having a phosphor layer for performing the conversion, and the phosphor plate may include a YAG crystal. The photon receiving member may include a limited number of grid cells. An optical system may be disposed between the conversion member and the photon receiving member. The optical system is arranged to direct photons created at the particular location to a corresponding location in the photon receiving member. In one embodiment, the optical system is an amplifying optical system. The marking is attached to the conversion member. In particular, the charged particle beam device can be embodied as an electron beam device. More specifically, the electron beam apparatus is a lithography system.

In addition to the foregoing concepts and all related details, the present invention is also to be construed as being limited by the scope of the appended claims. . In the scope of the patent application below, it is not necessary to care about the meaning of the preceding words. Any element symbol corresponding to the structure in the patent application group and the drawings below is intended to support the reading of the scope of the patent application, which is merely an exemplary meaning of the preceding word.

1. . . Conversion element

2. . . camera

3. . . Grid unit

4. . . Charged particle beam

5. . . beam

6. . . mark

6B. . . mark

6B1. . . Marking component

6B2. . . Marking component

6C. . . mark

7. . . Scanning direction

8. . . Bullet point

9. . . Fit trajectory

10. . . Wafer

11. . . Sensor

12. . . Particle beam projector

13. . . track

14. . . time delay

C1. . . Sharp edge

C2. . . Sharp edge

C3. . . Sharp edge

C1-A. . . Sharp edge

C1-B. . . Sharp edge

Cl. . . Electronic system timer

CM. . . Control component

Cor. . . Corrected value

Cu. . . Computing unit

D1. . . Scanning direction

D2. . . Scanning direction

D3. . . Scanning direction

E1. . . Blade

E2. . . Blade

E3. . . Blade

F. . . Field

S. . . Sensor

The invention has been explained above in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of a reticle lithography system according to the invention as shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 shows a micro-sensor according to the invention. A representative diagram of the correction portion of the shadow system; FIG. 2 is a representative diagram of an embodiment of the sensor according to the present invention for determining the characteristics of one of the lithographic systems to be written; FIG. A representative diagram of another embodiment of a sensor for determining the characteristics of a write beam of a lithography system; FIG. 4 is a top view of the sensor embodiment of FIG. Figure 5 shows an example of a signal obtained from the sensors according to Figures 3 and 4; the system shown in Figure 6 is to be incorporated into a regular shape hexagonal marker in a sensor and is A top view of the presently preferred embodiment; Figure 7 shows a signal from a particle beam spot spanning a mark (e.g., the mark shown in Figure 6) for use in particle beam spots and marks (i.e., sensing) Between the directions of relative motion of each other to determine the particle beam spot size and position; Figure 1 shows a wafer and wafer a chuck, and a top view of a portion of the field to be processed by the lithography system on the wafer, which is improved by placing the sensor of the present invention at a plurality of strategically selected locations outside the wafer; Figure 9 is a graphical diagram of the relationship between the measured signal according to the present invention and a typical Gaussian distribution of the size X per meter of amperage (A/m) relative to the particle beam spot; and Figures 10 and 11 Shown is a schematic diagram of a so-called timing measurement according to the present invention. FIG. 10 shows the position of the "open" and "closed" particle beams relative to a blade, and FIG. 11 shows that it is directed to one. Subsequent timing of the particle beam and time delay.

1. . . Conversion element

2. . . camera

4. . . Charged particle beam

5. . . beam

S. . . Sensor

CM. . . Control component

Cor. . . Corrected value

Cu. . . Computing unit

Cl. . . Electronic system timer

Claims (39)

A method for measuring characteristics of a large number of charged particle beams (especially a direct writing lithography system), wherein: a conversion element is used to convert the charged particle beam into a light beam; and a plurality of photosensitive detectors are used; An array of (eg, a diode, CCD, or CMOS device) that detects the beams, wherein the photodetectors are aligned with the conversion element; electronically after the beams are exposed Reading the result signals from the detectors; using the signals to determine the value of one or more particle beam characteristics, thereby using an automatic electronic calculator; electronically adapting the calculated characteristic values based on the values a charged particle system for correcting one or more characteristic values of one or more of the charged particle beams in the charged particle beam beyond a specification range, wherein determining the particle beam characteristics is based on a converted charged particle beam (4) The generated signal is implemented to use a blocking element positioned at a known position relative to one of the transducers while allowing the blocking element and the charged particle beam to be opposite each other Moving one or more known movement amount, wherein the charged particle blocking element (6) will be integrated in the conversion element is provided at its top end. The method of claim 1, wherein the detector element is integrated in the conversion element and disposed at a bottom end thereof. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the system is adjusted by at least one of the following: Electronically modifying a pattern of electronic material to be imaged by the charged particle beam system, particularly modifying control data of the pattern; modifying line width; electronically affecting a position correction member of the particle beam system for Correcting the position of one or more charged particle beams, especially by introducing a time delay. For example, the method of claim 3, wherein the system is separately adjusted by modifying the electronic data. The method of claim 1, wherein the charged particle beam spot size is smaller than the resolution of the conversion element. The method of claim 5, wherein the intensity of a beam is used to determine a particle beam characteristic value. The method of claim 6, wherein the light intensity and a blade are used in combination to infer the size of a particle beam spot in one direction. The method of claim 7, wherein the particle beam spot size in at least two directions, in particular three directions, is used to infer a particle beam spot shape. The method of claim 1, wherein the particle beam characteristic is measured in accordance with a plurality of signals generated during a step of scanning a charged particle beam in one of the directions of the barrier element. The method of claim 9, wherein the particle beam is turned off and on during the scanning, in particular, the particle beam is turned off and on at a plurality of predetermined times. For example, the method of applying for the scope of patent item 9, wherein "closed" and "On" is incrementally delayed relative to the scan start point during multiple scans in one direction. The method of claim 1, wherein the measurement of the pulse duration is determined using a measurement having a preset particle beam on/off timing. The method of claim 1, wherein the light beam generated by irradiating a charged particle beam on the converter is optically corrected by the photosensitive detector (especially by a lens system) for receiving, more specifically It is said that the generated beams are kept isolated from each other, that is, after correction, there is no overlap between the generated beams. The method of claim 1, wherein a particle beam detector is used to infer a plurality of particle beam characteristics, the particle beam detector comprising a particle beam blocking element, a conversion element, and an electronically readable a photon receiving element, a relative movement of an electron beam and a particle beam blocker, and an electronic computing unit (Cu) having at least one or more of the following: a particle beam position, a possible masking effect on the particle beam Time delay of the device, particle beam spot size, particle beam current, and shielding element function. The method of claim 1, wherein the charged particle beam system (at least the particle beam generating portion thereof) is provided with an optical sensor, and wherein the particle beam characteristic is detected (especially the barrier element thereon) The pattern detector is used to optically detect the position of the system relative to a separate movable platform for holding a target surface and including the detector. a sensor for use in a lithography system and in a multi-particle Measuring one or more features of one or more particle beams in a beamlet inspection apparatus, the sensor comprising a transducer for converting a particle beam into a beam; and a photon acceptor arranged Forming a light beam emitted by the converter when a particle beam is incident, and converting light from the received beam into an electrical signal for an electronic control system to read from the sensor signal. A sensor of claim 16, wherein a particle beam blocking element is disposed on a surface of the converter. A sensor according to clause 17 of the patent application, characterized in that a separate barrier element is provided for each particle beam, in particular, at a known relative position. A sensor according to claim 16, 17 or 18, wherein the barrier element has a sharp edge perpendicular to a surface of the conversion member. A sensor of claim 17 or 18, wherein the barrier element has a plurality of sharp edges. The sensor of claim 17 or 18, wherein the barrier element is composed of a heavy material, preferably consisting of tungsten, and the thickness range is preferably between 50 and 500 nm. In particular, it should be thick enough to adequately block an incident charged particle beam, while on the other hand thin enough to minimize defocusing and edge roughness effects. The sensor of claim 19, wherein the sensor comprises a thin layer of light metal (such as aluminum) between the blade and the converter, and the thickness ranges between 30 and 80 nm. . a sensor as claimed in claim 17 or 18, wherein The sensor includes at least one barrier element having three sharp edges that are hexagonal in shape, particularly angles that are nominally 120 degrees apart. The sensor of claim 17 or 18, wherein an optical system is disposed between a conversion element and a photodetector. A lithography system for transferring a pattern onto a surface of a target using a charged particle beam apparatus, the apparatus capable of generating a plurality of charged particle beams for writing the pattern on the surface, wherein the pattern is applied Any one of the measurement method of claim 1 and the sensor of claim 20 of the patent application. A lithography system for transferring a pattern onto a surface of a target using a charged particle beam apparatus, the apparatus capable of generating a plurality of charged particle beams for writing the pattern on the surface, thereby The pattern is written on the surface to individually close and open each particle beam with a mask of the system, and a sensor disposed at a position spaced from the surface of the target is used prior to at least one writing action. Sensing a feature of a write beam, wherein the sensor is arranged in the system for directly detecting all of the write beams simultaneously, wherein the sensor includes a converter For converting each of the particle beams into a light beam, the sensor further comprising an array of a plurality of photosensitive elements (such as photodiode elements) for detecting the light beams and for An electronic charge is generated when exposed to light, and the array is read by a computing unit in at least substantially simultaneous manner. When reading, the computing unit provides a corrected value signal to the particle beam device. And / or a pattern to a controller that, to modify the electronic data representing the pattern. The system of claim 26, wherein the sensor further comprises a barrier element disposed at a top end of the converter. The system of claim 26 or 27, wherein the system is adjusted by at least one of the following: electronically correcting a pattern of electronic image to be imaged by the charged particle beam system, particularly control data Correcting the line width; electronically affecting a position correcting member of the particle beam system for correcting the position of one or more charged particle beams. The system of claim 26 or 27, wherein the calculating unit provides a correction value based on information from the sensor for correcting one or more of the following: a particle beam in two directions of a plane Position, wherein the plane is preferably parallel to the plane of the target zone; the intensity or current of the particle beam; the position of the particle beam spot of the Gaussian distribution of the particle beam and the particle beam spot size and standard deviation. The system of claim 26 or 27, wherein a particle beam is scanned over the sensor and is turned on if it is expected to be at a predetermined position, specifically, a decision is made The position and timing error of the write beam. The system of claim 30, wherein the particle beam is turned on for a predetermined period of time, and specifically, a pulse duration variation error is determined. A system as claimed in claim 26, wherein a plurality of scans are performed on the sensor. The system of claim 26 or 27, wherein a charged particle beam is scanned in the three different directions on the sensor, preferably, the three directions are distributed to each other at a corresponding angle. In a plane. The system of claim 26 or 27, wherein a charged particle beam is scanned in a plurality of stages in a single direction at different positions on a sensor, the moving distance being the expected or determined of the charged particle beam. At least three times the diameter of the charged particle beam. A system as claimed in claim 26, wherein the physical displacement of a particle beam spot and the time delay of a masking portion of the particle beam are measured. A lithography system for transferring a pattern onto a surface of a target using a charged particle beam apparatus, the apparatus being capable of generating a plurality of charged particle beams for writing the pattern on the surface. A lithography system comprising a platform for use with an object (such as a wafer or a reticle) to be processed by a multi-charged particle beam device, the platform having a plurality of sensors of any of the aforementioned patent claims For measuring the characteristics of each charged particle beam, wherein each of the plurality of sensors is used to measure all charged particle beams in the device at a time, and wherein the plurality of senses The sensors in the detector are distributed at various locations near the object to be processed, and the distance between them is such that the particle beam apparatus can be corrected more than once when the wafer is completely disposed, specifically speaking This will result in efficient completion of all disposals, ie, no significant loss of the total throughput of the system compared to a single sensor system. For example, the lithography system of claim 37, wherein The above-described at least two sensors are distributed at an average and at least a corresponding distance in the orbit of the particle beam apparatus with respect to the object to be processed, thereby achieving the above-described purpose of facilitating efficient completion of the entire treatment. The lithography system of claim 37 or 38, wherein the method of any one of claims 1 to 15 is applied, and the sensor of any one of claims 16 to 25 is applied, and A lithography system of any one of claims 26 to 38.