US 12,476,072 B2
Operating a particle beam apparatus
Bjoern Gamm, Koenigsbronn (DE); and Christian Birle, Deiningen (DE)
Assigned to Carl Zeiss Microscopy, GmbH, Jena (DE)
Filed by Carl Zeiss Microscopy GmbH, Jena (DE)
Filed on Feb. 4, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/592,567.
Claims priority of application No. 102021102900.7 (DE), filed on Feb. 8, 2021.
Prior Publication US 2022/0384140 A1, Dec. 1, 2022
Int. Cl. H01J 37/26 (2006.01); H01J 37/10 (2006.01); H01J 37/147 (2006.01); H01J 37/28 (2006.01)
CPC H01J 37/265 (2013.01) [H01J 37/10 (2013.01); H01J 37/1474 (2013.01); H01J 37/28 (2013.01); H01J 2237/2487 (2013.01)] 8 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for operating a particle beam apparatus, comprising:
choosing a magnification from a first magnification range of the particle beam apparatus by driving a first amplifier unit and a second amplifier unit using a control unit of the particle beam apparatus;
feeding a digital control signal from the control unit to a digital-to-analog converter of the particle beam apparatus using a first signal line, which connects the control unit to the digital-to-analog converter, wherein the digital control signal is used for guiding the particle beam over the object;
generating an analog control signal on the basis of the digital control signal using the digital-to-analog converter;
feeding the analog control signal from the digital-to-analog converter to the first amplifier unit of the particle beam apparatus using a second signal line which connects a digital-to-analog converter to the first amplifier unit;
generating an analog first amplifier signal on the basis of the analog control signal using the first amplifier unit;
feeding the analog first amplifier signal from the first amplifier unit to the second amplifier unit of the particle beam apparatus using a third signal line, wherein the first amplifier unit is arranged between the digital-to-analog converter and the second amplifier unit and wherein the third signal line connects the first amplifier unit to the second amplifier unit;
generating an analog second amplifier signal on the basis of the analog first amplifier signal using the second amplifier unit;
determining, using the control of the particle beam apparatus, whether the chosen magnification from the first magnification range deviates from a limit of a second magnification range with a deviation, wherein the first magnification range and the second magnification range are different, wherein the first magnification range includes magnifications of the particle beam apparatus which are less than magnifications of the particle beam apparatus from the second magnification range;
determining whether a number of pixels on the surface of the object to which the particle beam is intended to be guided falls below a predefinable pixel threshold value; and
if the chosen magnification deviates from the limit of the second magnification range and the deviation is less than a predefinable value and if the number of pixels falls below the predefinable pixel threshold value, carrying out the following steps without switching the magnification to a magnification from the second magnification range:
feeding the analog second amplifier signal from the second amplifier unit to a scanning unit of the particle beam apparatus using a fourth signal line, which connects the second amplifier unit to the scanning unit;
guiding the particle beam of the particle beam apparatus over the object using the scanning unit; and
imaging, processing and/or analyzing the object with the particle beam.