CHARGED-PARTICLE BEAM EXPOSURE APPARATUS, AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To realize highly reliable exposure with charged-particle beams, by so evaluating the uniformity of the charged-particle beams even during their exposures as to make controllable properly the strength distribution of the charged-particle beams. SOLUTION: In the charged-particle beam exposure apparatus for exposing a wafer 9 to charged-particle beams, electron beams radiated from an electron source 1 of a charged-particle beam source are so made nearly parallel with each other in a collimator lens 2 as to be projected on an aperture array 3. The aperture array 3 has apertures for forming a plurality of electron beams used for the exposure of the wafer. A current-sensor array 4 has sensors for measuring the strengths of the electron beams (currents) in the portions other than the apertures. The respective current sensors of the current-sensor array 4 measure the strengths of the electron beams during their exposure operations. Based on these measurement results, the strength distribution of the electron beams is so evaluated as to regulate at need the optical powers of electron lenses constituting the collimator lens 2 and as to make uniform the strength distribution of the electron beams. COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI