Abstract: Systems, components, and methods for beam-induced deposition are described. A charged particle beam system can include a vacuum chamber. The system can include a charged particle beam source, operably coupled with the vacuum chamber and including an emitter section and a column section, the charged particle beam source being configured to generate a beam of charged particles and to direct the beam of charged particles into the vacuum chamber. The system can include a precursor source, operably coupled with the vacuum chamber and configured to direct a gas stream comprising a precursor into the vacuum chamber. The precursor can include a hydrocarbon having a vapor pressure greater than about 1.6×10?4 mbar at about 293 K and about 101.3 kPa, and wherein the hydrocarbon is not naphthalene.

Abstract: Methods include conditioning at least a portion of a gas delivery system with a carbon-based conditioning agent to provide a carbon-based residual, and etching a substrate with a focused ion beam, in the presence of an ammonia-based delayering agent provided by the gas delivery system and in the presence of the carbon-based residual, wherein the carbon-based residual reduces a topographical variation of a depth of the etching. Apparatus include a focused ion beam system configured to deliver a focused ion beam to a sample, and a pre-conditioned gas delivery system configured to deliver an ammonia-based delayering agent to the sample at least while the focused ion beam is being delivered to the sample, wherein the pre-conditioned gas delivery system includes a carbon-based residual in the gas delivery system, wherein a portion of the carbon-based residual is present at the sample during the etching of the sample with the ammonia-based delayering agent.

Abstract: A focused ion beam (FIB) is used to mill beam spots into a substrate at a variety of ion beam column settings to form a set of training images that are used to train a convolutional neural network. After the neural network is trained, an ion beam can be adjusted by obtaining spot image which is processed with the neural network. The neural network can provide a magnitude and direction of defocus, aperture position, lens adjustments, or other ion beam or ion beam column settings. In some cases, adjustments are not made by the neural network, but serve to indicate that the ion beam and associated ion column continue to operate stably, and additional adjustment is not required.

Abstract: A focused ion beam (FIB) is used to mill beam spots into a substrate at a variety of ion beam column settings to form a set of training images that are used to train a convolutional neural network. After the neural network is trained, an ion beam can be adjusted by obtaining spot image which is processed with the neural network. The neural network can provide a magnitude and direction of defocus, aperture position, lens adjustments, or other ion beam or ion beam column settings. In some cases, adjustments are not made by the neural network, but serve to indicate that the ion beam and associated ion column continue to operate stably, and additional adjustment is not required.