Abstract: An inspection system, and a computer program product that stores instructions for: obtaining an aerial image of an area of the mask; wherein the aerial image represents an expected image to be formed on a photoresist of an object during a lithography process that involves illuminating the area of the mask, by a lithography tool; wherein the photoresist has a printability threshold; wherein the lithography process exhibits a process window that introduces allowable changes at pixels of the expected image that do not exceed an intensity threshold; and searching for at least one weak point at the area of the mask, each weak point is a local extremum point of the aerial image that is spaced apart from the printability threshold by a distance that does not exceed the intensity threshold or is a crossing point of the printability threshold and being of a slope that is below a predefined threshold.

Abstract: A computerized method for estimating a size of a nanometric part of an inspected article, the method including: (a) acquiring inspection results generated by processing an inspection image which was generated by collecting signals arriving from a portion of the article which includes the part by an inspection system; (b) fitting to the inspection results an approximation function from a group of functions which is related to a response pattern of the inspection system; and (c) determining an estimated size of the part, based on at least one parameter of the approximation function.

Abstract: A system, a non-transitory computer readable medium and a method for detecting a parameter of a pattern, the method comprises: obtaining an image of the pattern; wherein the image is generated by scanning the pattern with a charged particle beam; processing the image to provide an edge enhanced image; wherein the processing comprises computing an aggregate energy of first n spectral components of the image, wherein n exceeds two; and further processing the edge enhanced image and determining a parameter of the pattern.

Abstract: An evaluation system that includes a miniature module that comprises a miniature objective lens and a miniature supporting module; wherein the miniature supporting module is arranged, when placed on a sample, to position the miniature objective lens at working distance from the sample; wherein the miniature objective lens is arranged to gather radiation from an area of the sample when positioned at the working distance from the sample; a sensor arranged to detect radiation that is gathered by the miniature objective lens to provide detection signals indicative of the area of the sample.

Abstract: A non-transitory computer readable medium, a system and a method. The method may include obtaining, by an image obtaining module, an image of a measurement site, the measurement site comprise the feature, the image of the measurement site comprises an image of the feature; processing, by an image processor, the image of the measurement site to provide an artificial image, the artificial image comprise a artificial image of an artificial feature, the artificial feature differs from the feature; measuring a parameter of the artificial feature to provide a measurement result, wherein the measuring comprises applying a measurement algorithm that is inadequate for measuring the parameter of the feature; and determining a value of the parameter of the feature in response to the measurement result.

Abstract: A coupling module may include an upper portion that defines an aperture, mask contact elements, chuck contact elements and an intermediate element that is connected between the mask contact elements and the upper portion. A shape and a size of the aperture may correspond to a shape and size of a pattern transfer area of an extreme ultra violet (EUVL) mask. The coupling module may be shaped and sized so that once the mask contact elements contact the upper portion of the EUVL mask, the chuck contact elements contact a chuck that supports the mask. The coupling module may further provide at least one conductive path between the upper portion of the EUVL mask and the chuck when the EUVL mask is positioned on the chuck.