What Can a Dual beam Really Do?

Full Text: Smallstage Dualbeam (SDB) systems, that is a Focussed Ion Beam column coupled with a SEM column, have been around for about five years now. There impact on the Semiconductor industry has been enormous, with virtually every lab having a SDB to produce, characterise and analyse cross sections and TEM samples on the Nano-scale. But what about other industries? What else can SDB system be used for? The SEM column in itself is a very powerful tool for sample characterisation, modification and analysis. An electron beam from a Tungsten or Thermal Field Emission source has enough current to allow sophisticated patterns to be created in photo-resist samples, a process known as lithography. The current is also high enough to allow for a process known as Electron Beam Induced Deposition (EBID), where the beam interacts with an introduced gas and material is deposited in a controlled manner on the sample. With the addition of the Focussed Ion Beam (FIB) direct removal of material from a samples becomes possible. Focussed Ga+ ions are scanned in controlled patterns over the specimen and material is removed rapidly and effectively. The FIB also allows deposition in a similar way to EBID, but on a much larger scale. The FIB also has imaging properties not available with a SEM. As ions are large they are channelled in the grains of certain materials and this results in channelling contrast, a feature which can be used to determine crystal orientation. Combing a SEM and FIB column in the form of a SDB results in a very powerful tool which has many applications outside it's original design purpose. As the cost of these tools becomes more attractive, the potential for even greater diversification of applications is apparent. (Author)