US-12626883-B2 - Apparatus and method for manipulating a microscopic sample

Abstract

A sample manipulation system for a sample to be used in a charged particle beam process. The sample manipulation system includes a carrier defining a passageway, a wire slidably supported and at least partially housed by the carrier, and a feed mechanism. The wire is configured to slide through the passageway. The wire includes a supported portion and a protruding portion. The supported portion is disposed in the passageway and the protruding portion extends from the carrier for engaging the sample. The feed mechanism is configured to drive the wire through the passageway to control a length of the protruding portion.

Inventors

• Joseph M Lebow

Assignees

• FEI COMPANY

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20230713

Claims (19)

1. 1 . A sample manipulation system for a sample to be used in a charged particle beam process, the sample manipulation system comprising: a carrier defining a first carrier end, a second carrier end opposite the first carrier end, and a passageway extending between the first carrier end and the second carrier end along a feed direction; a wire slidably supported and at least partially housed by the carrier, the wire configured to slide through the passageway, the wire including a supported portion and a protruding portion, wherein the supported portion is disposed in the passageway and the protruding portion extends from the first carrier end for engaging the sample; and a feed mechanism including an electrically powered actuator positioned closer to the second carrier end than the first carrier end and configured to drive the wire through the passageway along the feed direction to control a length of the protruding portion.
2. 2 . The sample manipulation system of claim 1 , wherein a width of the wire is 10 micrometers or less.
3. 3 . The sample manipulation system of claim 1 , wherein the wire is made of tungsten.
4. 4 . The sample manipulation system of claim 1 , wherein the length of the protruding portion is between 1 and 20 micrometers.
5. 5 . The sample manipulation system of claim 1 , wherein the electrically powered actuator includes a motor or a piezoelectric actuator.
6. 6 . The sample manipulation system of claim 1 , wherein the feed mechanism further includes a clamp mechanism or a pinch roller, and wherein the electrically powered actuator is operatively coupled with one or both of the clamp mechanism or the pinch roller to drive the wire.
7. 7 . A method of manipulating a sample with the sample manipulation system of claim 1 , wherein the electrically powered actuator is a first actuator, the method comprising: acquiring an image; driving, via a first actuator of the sample manipulation system, the wire through the passageway to a predetermined length of the protruding portion of the wire; and adjusting, via a second actuator coupled to the sample manipulation system, a distance between a distal end of the wire and the sample.
8. 8 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising: acquiring one or more second images including a portion of the sample and the distal end of the wire, and adjusting the distance between the distal end of the wire and the sample based on the second images.
9. 9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the second images are scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images.
10. 10 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the second actuator is configured to translate and rotate the sample manipulation system with at least four degrees of freedom.
11. 11 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the image includes at least a portion of the carrier.
12. 12 . The method of claim 7 , wherein the image is a SEM image or an optical image.
13. 13 . The method of claim 7 , further comprising attaching the distal end of the wire and the sample.
14. 14 . A charged particle microscope, comprising: a sample holder for holding a sample; a sample manipulation system comprising: a carrier defining a passageway; a wire slidably supported and at least partially housed by the carrier, the wire including a supported portion and a protruding portion, wherein the supported portion is disposed in the passageway and the protruding portion extends from the carrier for engaging the sample; and a feed mechanism including a first actuator configured to drive the wire along the passageway, wherein the first actuator is an electrically powered actuator; a second actuator coupled to the sample manipulation system; at least one detector; and a controller including a processor and a non-transitory memory for storing computer readable instructions, by executing the instructions in the processor, the charged particle microscope is configured to: acquire, via the detector, an image; adjust, via the first actuator, a length of the protruding portion of the wire from the carrier based on the acquired image; and adjust, via the second actuator, a relative position between a sample and a distal end of the wire.
15. 15 . The charged particle microscope of claim 14 , further comprising a charged particle source for generating a charged particle beam, and the charged particle microscope is further configured to: direct the charged particle beam towards the sample to attach the sample to the distal end of the wire.
16. 16 . The charged particle microscope of claim 14 , wherein the detector includes an electron detector, and wherein adjust the length of the protruding portion of the wire from the carrier based on the acquired image includes: determine the length of the protruding portion of the wire based on the acquired image, and adjust the length of the protruding portion based on the determined length of the protruding portion.
17. 17 . The charged particle microscope of claim 14 , wherein adjust the length of the protruding portion of the wire from the carrier based on the acquired image includes adjust the length of the protruding portion to a predetermined length based on the acquired image.
18. 18 . The charged particle microscope of claim 17 , wherein the predetermined length is between 1 and 10 micrometers, and the wire is a tungsten wire.
19. 19 . The charged particle microscope of claim 14 , further comprising an electron source, and wherein the relative position between the sample and the distal end of the wire is adjusted based on one or more SEM images.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present disclosure relates to a sample manipulation system, and more particularly, to a sample manipulation system in a charged particle microscope. SUMMARY In one aspect, the disclosure provides a sample manipulation system for a sample to be used in a charged particle beam process. The sample manipulation system includes a carrier defining a passageway, a wire slidably supported and at least partially housed by the carrier, and a feed mechanism. The wire is configured to slide through the passageway. The wire includes a supported portion and a protruding portion. The supported portion is disposed in the passageway and the protruding portion extends from the carrier for engaging the sample. The feed mechanism is configured to drive the wire through the passageway to control a length of the protruding portion. In another aspect, the disclosure provides a method of manipulating a sample with the sample manipulation system. The method includes acquiring an image; driving, via a first actuator of the sample manipulation system, the wire through the passageway to a predetermined length of the protruding portion of the wire; and adjusting, via a second actuator coupled to the sample manipulation system, a distance between a distal end of the wire and the sample. In another aspect, the disclosure provides a charged particle microscope. The microscope includes a sample holder for holding a sample; a sample manipulation system comprising: a carrier defining a passageway; a wire slidably supported and at least partially housed by the carrier, the wire including a supported portion and a protruding portion, wherein the supported portion is disposed in the passageway and the protruding portion extends from the carrier for engaging the sample; and a feed mechanism including a first actuator for driving the wire along the passageway; a second actuator coupled to the sample manipulation system; at least a detector; and a controller including a processor and a non-transitory memory for storing computer readable instructions, by executing the instructions in the processor, the charged particle microscope is configured to: acquire, via the detector, an image; adjust, via the first actuator, a length of a protruding portion of the wire from the carrier based on the acquired image; and adjust, via the second actuator, a relative position between a sample and a distal end of the wire. Other aspects of the disclosure will become apparent by consideration of the detailed description and accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a step of a lift-out process. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of another step of the lift-out process. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of another step of the lift-out process. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a sample manipulation system. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another implementation of the sample manipulation system. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of yet another implementation of the sample manipulation system. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a dual-beam charged particle microscopy (CPM) system including the sample manipulation system. FIG. 8 is a flow chart depicting a method of manipulating a sample using the sample manipulation system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION To prepare a sample for a charged particle beam process (such as inspection by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), etc.,) the sample is milled into a thin lamella. Some techniques for preparing TEM samples may involve cleaving, chemical polishing, mechanical polishing, or broad beam low energy ion milling. Combinations of these techniques are also possible. These techniques often require that the starting material be sectioned into smaller and smaller pieces, thereby destroying much of the original sample. Other techniques generally referred to as “lift-out” procedures use a focused ion beam (FIB) to cut the sample from a substrate while greatly limiting or eliminating damage to surrounding areas of the substrate. These techniques are useful for analyzing the results of semiconductor manufacture, for example. A distal end of a wire (or needle) may be attached to the sample (such as a sample processed through milling) for removing the sample from the bulk material. The sample may be held by the wire for further processing or transferring to be inspected by another tool, such as a TEM. Transportation to the TEM grid may occur without removing the sample from the milling chamber. The sample may be attached to the TEM grid and then the wire may be severed such that the sample remains with the TEM grid. A small portion of the wire may also remain with the sample. As a result of the wire being severed, said small portion of the wire is consumed, decreasing a length of the remaining wire. This process may be referred to as the “lift-out” process. Other details of the lift-out process are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,005,636, the entire c