Abstract: In one embodiment, a multi-charged-particle-beam writing method includes performing a tracking operation such that, while a substrate placed on a stage moving continuously is being irradiated with multiple beams including a plurality of charged particle beams, deflection positions of the multiple beams follow movement of the stage, and applying the multiple beams to the substrate having a writing area including a plurality of rectangular regions arranged in a mesh during the tracking operation such that each of the plurality of rectangular regions is irradiated with the multiple beams. Each rectangular region includes a plurality of pixels each having a predetermined size and arranged in a mesh. At least one subset of the plurality of pixels is irradiated with the multiple beams in a first shot order and is then irradiated with the multiple beams in a second shot order different from the first shot order.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a multi-charged-particle-beam writing method includes performing a tracking operation such that, while a substrate placed on a stage moving continuously is being irradiated with multiple beams including a plurality of charged particle beams, deflection positions of the multiple beams follow movement of the stage, and applying the multiple beams to the substrate having a writing area including a plurality of rectangular regions arranged in a mesh during the tracking operation such that each of the plurality of rectangular regions is irradiated with the multiple beams. Each rectangular region includes a plurality of pixels each having a predetermined size and arranged in a mesh. At least one subset of the plurality of pixels is irradiated with the multiple beams in a first shot order and is then irradiated with the multiple beams in a second shot order different from the first shot order.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a multi charged particle beam evaluation method includes writing a plurality of evaluation patterns on a substrate by using multi charged particle beams, with a design value of a line width changed by a predetermined change amount at a predetermined pitch, measuring the line widths of the plurality of evaluation patterns thus written, and extracting a variation in a specific period of a distribution of differences between results of a measurement value and the design value of each of the line widths of the plurality of evaluation patterns. The predetermined change amount is equal to or larger than data resolution and smaller than a size of each of pixels, each of which is a unit region to be irradiated with one of the multi charged particle beams.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a multi charged particle beam evaluation method includes writing a plurality of evaluation patterns on a substrate by using multi charged particle beams, with a design value of a line width changed by a predetermined change amount at a predetermined pitch, measuring the line widths of the plurality of evaluation patterns thus written, and extracting a variation in a specific period of a distribution of differences between results of a measurement value and the design value of each of the line widths of the plurality of evaluation patterns. The predetermined change amount is equal to or larger than data resolution and smaller than a size of each of pixels, each of which is a unit region to be irradiated with one of the multi charged particle beams.

Abstract: A charged particle beam writing method includes acquiring the deviation amount of the deflection position per unit tracking deflection amount with respect to each tracking coefficient of a plurality of tracking coefficients having been set for adjusting the tracking amount to shift the deflection position of a charged particle beam on the writing target substrate in order to follow movement of the stage on which the writing target substrate is placed, extracting a tracking coefficient based on which the deviation amount of the deflection position per the unit tracking deflection amount is closest to zero among the plurality of tracking coefficients, and writing a pattern on the writing target substrate with the charged particle beam while performing tracking control in which the tracking amount has been adjusted using the tracking coefficient extracted.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a deflector deflecting a charged particle beam, a first correcting lens and a second correcting lens correcting a focus position of the charged particle beam, a focus correction amount calculator calculating a first correction amount for the focus position according to a change in a height position of a sample surface, and calculating a second correction amount for the focus position according to a change in shot size of the charged particle beam, a first DAC (digital to analog converter) amplifier applying a voltage for a ground potential based on the first correction amount to the first correcting lens, and a second DAC amplifier applying a voltage for a ground potential based on the second correction amount to the second correcting lens, an output of the second DAC amplifier being smaller than an output of the first DAC amplifier.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method of obtaining a beam deflection shape includes using a plurality of beams to write a line pattern on a substrate by deflecting the plurality of beams, the plurality of beams being beams in the i-th row (i is an integer satisfying 1?i?m) among multiple charged-particle beams including beams of m rows and n columns (m and n are integers equal to or greater than two), the deflection being performed in such a manner that a writing area for a beam in the j-th column (j is an integer satisfying 1?j?n?1) is continuously adjacent to a writing area for a beam in the (j+1)th column, measuring a degree of unevenness of an edge of the line pattern, and obtaining a deflection shape of the beam based on the degree of unevenness.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method of obtaining a dose correction amount, the method includes writing evaluation patterns by irradiating a substrate with a charged particle beam by multiple writing with different numbers of paths using a charged particle beam writing apparatus, measuring a size of each of the evaluation patterns, calculating a size variation rate per path from a size measurement result of the evaluation pattern corresponding to each of the numbers of paths, and calculating a dose variation rate per path based on the size variation rate per path and a dose latitude indicating a ratio of a pattern size variation amount to a dose variation of the charged particle beam.

Abstract: An evaluation method according to an embodiment is to evaluate a precision of an aperture formed with multiple openings, and includes steps of forming a first evaluation pattern based on evaluation data using multiple electron beams generated by electron beam that has passed through the aperture, dividing the aperture into multiple regions, each of the regions including the multiple openings and defining the multiple divided regions, forming a second evaluation pattern based on evaluation data using the electron beam that has passed through a first divided region among the multiple divided regions, comparing the first evaluation pattern with the second evaluation pattern, and evaluating the precision of the aperture based on the comparison result between the first evaluation pattern and the second evaluation pattern.

Abstract: A charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a writing data generation circuitry to input character information or information of an item selected, for specifying an apparatus quality check pattern used for evaluating apparatus quality of a charged particle beam writing apparatus, and to generate writing data of the apparatus quality check pattern based on the character information or the information of the item selected, and a combination circuitry to input writing data of an actual chip pattern to be written on a target object, and to combine the writing data of the actual chip pattern and the writing data of the apparatus quality check pattern such that the actual chip pattern and the apparatus quality check pattern do not overlap with each other.

Abstract: A charged particle beam writing method includes acquiring the deviation amount of the deflection position per unit tracking deflection amount with respect to each tracking coefficient of a plurality of tracking coefficients having been set for adjusting the tracking amount to shift the deflection position of a charged particle beam on the writing target substrate in order to follow movement of the stage on which the writing target substrate is placed, extracting a tracking coefficient based on which the deviation amount of the deflection position per the unit tracking deflection amount is closest to zero among the plurality of tracking coefficients, and writing a pattern on the writing target substrate with the charged particle beam while performing tracking control in which the tracking amount has been adjusted using the tracking coefficient extracted.

Abstract: According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of correcting a position of a stage mechanism, includes generating a two-dimensional map of a distortion amount at a position of a stage by applying a distortion amount of a position in a first direction of the stage at each of measured positions in a second direction as a distortion amount of a position in the first direction of the stage at each position in the second direction at each position in the first direction and by applying a distortion amount of a position in the second direction of the stage at each of measured positions in the first direction as a distortion amount of a position in the second direction of the stage at each position in the first direction at each position in the second direction; and correcting position data by using the two-dimensional map.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a deflector deflecting a charged particle beam, a first correcting lens and a second correcting lens correcting a focus position of the charged particle beam, a focus correction amount calculator calculating a first correction amount for the focus position according to a change in a height position of a sample surface, and calculating a second correction amount for the focus position according to a change in shot size of the charged particle beam, a first DAC (digital to analog converter) amplifier applying a voltage for a ground potential based on the first correction amount to the first correcting lens, and a second DAC amplifier applying a voltage for a ground potential based on the second correction amount to the second correcting lens, an output of the second DAC amplifier being smaller than an output of the first DAC amplifier.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a method of obtaining a beam deflection shape includes using a plurality of beams to write a line pattern on a substrate by deflecting the plurality of beams, the plurality of beams being beams in the i-th row (i is an integer satisfying 1?i?m) among multiple charged-particle beams including beams of m rows and n columns (m and n are integers equal to or greater than two), the deflection being performed in such a manner that a writing area for a beam in the j-th column (j is an integer satisfying 1?j?n?1) is continuously adjacent to a writing area for a beam in the (j+1)th column, measuring a degree of unevenness of an edge of the line pattern, and obtaining a deflection shape of the beam based on the degree of unevenness.

Abstract: A charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a number of shots calculation circuit to calculate the number of shots in the case where a deflection region is irradiated with a shot of a charged particle beam, a deflection position correcting circuit to correct a deflection position of the charged particle beam to be shot in the deflection region, depending on the number of shots to be shot in the deflection region, and a deflector to deflect the charged particle beam to a corrected deflected position on the target object.

Abstract: A charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a writing data generation circuitry to input character information or information of an item selected, for specifying an apparatus quality check pattern used for evaluating apparatus quality of a charged particle beam writing apparatus, and to generate writing data of the apparatus quality check pattern based on the character information or the information of the item selected, and a combination circuitry to input writing data of an actual chip pattern to be written on a target object, and to combine the writing data of the actual chip pattern and the writing data of the apparatus quality check pattern such that the actual chip pattern and the apparatus quality check pattern do not overlap with each other.

Abstract: An evaluation method according to an embodiment is to evaluate a precision of an aperture formed with multiple openings, and includes steps of forming a first evaluation pattern based on evaluation data using multiple electron beams generated by electron beam that has passed through the aperture, dividing the aperture into multiple regions, each of the regions including the multiple openings and defining the multiple divided regions, forming a second evaluation pattern based on evaluation data using the electron beam that has passed through a first divided region among the multiple divided regions, comparing the first evaluation pattern with the second evaluation pattern, and evaluating the precision of the aperture based on the comparison result between the first evaluation pattern and the second evaluation pattern.

Abstract: According to one aspect of the present invention, a method of correcting a position of a stage mechanism, includes generating a two-dimensional map of a distortion amount at a position of a stage by applying a distortion amount of a position in a first direction of the stage at each of measured positions in a second direction as a distortion amount of a position in the first direction of the stage at each position in the second direction at each position in the first direction and by applying a distortion amount of a position in the second direction of the stage at each of measured positions in the first direction as a distortion amount of a position in the second direction of the stage at each position in the first direction at each position in the second direction; and correcting position data by using the two-dimensional map.

Abstract: An evaluation method according to an embodiment is to evaluate a precision of an aperture formed with multiple openings, and includes steps of forming a first evaluation pattern based on evaluation data using multiple electron beams generated by electron beam that has passed through the aperture, dividing the aperture into multiple regions, each of the regions including the multiple openings and defining the multiple divided regions, forming a second evaluation pattern based on evaluation data using the electron beam that has passed through a first divided region among the multiple divided regions, comparing the first evaluation pattern with the second evaluation pattern, and evaluating the precision of the aperture based on the comparison result between the first evaluation pattern and the second evaluation pattern.

Abstract: A charged particle beam writing apparatus includes a number of shots calculation circuit to calculate the number of shots in the case where a deflection region is irradiated with a shot of a charged particle beam, a deflection position correcting circuit to correct a deflection position of the charged particle beam to be shot in the deflection region, depending on the number of shots to be shot in the deflection region, and a deflector to deflect the charged particle beam to a corrected deflected position on the target object.