JPH0136667B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Field of Application] The present invention relates to a sample device used in a scanning electron microscope, an Auger electron analyzer, and the like.

This type of sample device includes X, Y horizontal movement, and Z
Movement, rotation, and tilting movements are required, and conventionally the stage placed inside the sample chamber is connected to an external drive mechanism using a telescopic sleeve or universal joint to transmit the desired movement to the stage. .

[Prior art] Figure 1 shows an outline of a conventional sample device.
1 is a sample chamber of a scanning electron microscope, and an electron optical system 2 including an objective lens is mounted above the sample chamber. A sample tilting stage 4 is rotatably held in the front lid 3 of the sample chamber, and when a gear 6 meshing with the gear 5 is rotated by an external knob 8 via a shaft 7, the stage 4 is moved to a shaft 9. It can be rotated around and tilted at any angle. A Y-movement stage 10, an X-movement stage 11, and a rotation stage 12 are sequentially stacked on the tilting stage 4.
A holder 14 holding a sample 13 is inserted into the rotation stage. A plurality of balls are interposed between the tilting stage 4 and the Y-movement stage 10 and between the Y-movement stage and the X-movement stage in order to smooth the movement of each stage. A shaft 15 of the rotary stage passes through both moving stages 10 and 11 and is taken out downward, and a bevel gear 16 is fixed to the tip thereof. A bevel gear 17 meshes with the bevel gear and is connected to a knob 20 provided on the front cover 3 via a universal joint 18 and a shaft 19. The shaft for rotation is hollow, and a shaft 21 for raising and lowering the sample is inserted into the shaft. The lower end of this shaft is in contact with a lever 22, and the rotation of the lever causes the sample holder 14 to move up and down. The lever is connected to a knob 26 via a screw rod 23, a universal joint 24 and a shaft 25.
Reference numeral 27 denotes a knob for Y movement, which transmits movement to the Y movement stage 10 via a shaft 28, a universal joint 29, and a screw rod 30. 31 is a knob of the X-movement stage.

In such a configuration, when the knobs 31 and 27 are arbitrarily rotated, the sample 13 moves in the X and Y directions within a plane perpendicular to the optical axis Z. Further, when the knob 26 is rotated, the position of the sample in the optical axis direction changes. Furthermore,
When the knob 20 is rotated, the sample rotates around the axis of the shaft 16, and when the knob 7 is turned again, the tilting stage 4 rotates, the entire stage rotates around the axis 9, and the sample can be tilted arbitrarily. be done.

With this configuration, the sample can be moved to any position and tilted at any angle, making it possible to observe the sample as desired; however, as can be seen from the figure, the drive shaft for each movement is Because it is installed in
When the tilting stage 4 is tilted for the purpose of tilting the sample, the respective movement transmission shafts become interlocked and interfere with each other, making it impossible to perform tilted observation at a desired angle. In addition, there are many sliding parts, making it necessary to use lubricant, which can cause contamination of the sample, and it is difficult to maintain an ultra-high vacuum inside the sample chamber because it is difficult to use metal bellows as a vacuum sealing member. It has the following disadvantages.

[Object of the Invention] The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional drawbacks, and in particular, it is possible to horizontally move or vertically move the inclination without any problem even though the inclination angle of the sample is set to be sufficiently large. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a sample device for an electron beam device, etc., which can be used to perform

[Configuration of the Invention] The configuration of the present invention is such that when the optical axis direction of an electron beam or the like is called the Z direction, the direction perpendicular to the Z direction is called the Y direction, and the direction perpendicular to the Z direction and the Y direction is called the X direction, A tilting body having a tilting axis in the Y direction is attached to a sample chamber, and a stage giving movement in the X direction and a stage giving movement in the Z direction are both placed on the tilting body, and the tilting body is placed thereon. or a stage placed on the tilting body to provide movement in the Y direction, and a double shaft movable together in the Y direction is arranged concentrically with the tilt axis of the tilting body, A first lever that converts movement of the axis into movement of the stage in the X direction is interposed between the optical axis side end of one of the axes and the stage that provides movement in the X direction, and means for pressing the other end of the shaft along the axis, and the shaft is between the optical axis side end of the other of the dual shafts and the stage that provides movement in the Z direction. A second lever for converting movement into Z-direction movement of the stage is interposed, and means for pressing the other end of the other shaft along the axis is provided, for moving the Y-direction moving stage. It is characterized by having a drive mechanism.

[Example] The present invention will be described in detail below based on an example shown in the drawings.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion thereof. Reference numeral 32 represents a vacuum casing corresponding to the front lid 3 of the sample chamber in FIG. On the vacuum side of the vacuum housing, linear guides 33a and 33b containing a large number of balls and making rolling contact are provided to hold the Y-movement base 34 of the sample movably in the direction perpendicular to the optical axis Z (Y direction). are doing. Although the linear guide is actually arranged in a direction perpendicular to the drawing, it is arranged in the same direction as the Z-axis for convenience in order to make the drawing easier to understand. A sample tilting body 35 is held on the Y-axis base so as to be rotatable around the Y-axis via a ball bearing, and a gear 36 is carved on a part of its outer periphery. The gear is meshed with a gear 37, and is taken out of the sample chamber via a flexible shaft (not shown) consisting of a shaft 38 and a bellows, etc.
It is connected to a rotating knob (not shown). A sample vertical movement (Z movement) stage 40 is provided at the tip of the tilting body on the optical axis side via a linear guide 39 having a large number of balls. A sample X-movement stage 42 is held on the Z-movement stage so as to be movable in the X-axis direction via linear guides 41a and 41b similar to the linear guide 39. Further, an L-shaped lever 43 is rotatably attached to the Z-movement stage, one end of which is in contact with the end of the X-movement stage, and the other end is arranged concentrically with the axis of the tilting body. It is in contact with the X dynamic drive shaft 44. A sample rotation stage 45 is held on the X-movement stage, and a sample 46 is held on the rotation stage via a holder. A shaft 47 supported by the X-movement stage is attached to this rotary stage via a ball bearing, and the shaft is taken out below the X-movement stage. A bevel gear 48 is fixed to the shaft, and is connected via a bevel gear 49 and a rotating shaft 50 to a rotating knob (not shown) outside the sample chamber. Said X
The drive shaft 44 passes through the Y-movement base 34 and the vacuum casing 32, is taken out to the atmosphere, and reaches into the Y-movement moving plate 51 that is integrated with the Y-movement base. Applicable Y
The movable plate is connected to the Y-movement base 34 by a plurality of cylindrical supports 52a and 52b. The column movably passes through the vacuum housing and is actually held in the vacuum housing by a linear guide containing a number of balls. A vacuum seal is provided between the pillar and the vacuum housing 32 by metal bellows 53a and 53b. A Z-movement drive shaft 54 is movably inserted into the support column 52a, and a lever 55 is fixed near its vacuum inner end. The movement of this shaft is also guided by a guide using a large number of balls. A metal bellows 56 is provided between the Z moving shaft and the Y moving base 34 to provide a vacuum seal while allowing movement. A cylindrical shaft 57 is disposed concentrically and fitted into the X-movement drive shaft 44 to form a double shaft. An L-shaped lever 58 is in contact with one end (the side closer to the optical axis Z) of the cylindrical shaft, and the other end is in contact with the lever 55. The relationship between the double shaft and each lever is shown in a perspective view in FIG. The other end of the lever 58 is the stage 4 for raising and lowering the sample.
0, the lever 55 and the cylindrical shaft 57
The movement from the Z moving shaft 54 is transmitted to the Z moving stage 40 via the Z moving axis 54 . 59 is a metal bellows provided between the X drive shaft 44 and the vacuum housing 32. A frame 6 fixed to the vacuum housing 32
A Y-movement micrometer head 60 is supported at 1, and its tip engages with a Y-movement plate to move the stage in the Y direction. 62 and 63 are each X
This is a micrometer head for driving the Y-movement and Y-movement, and is attached to the Y-movement moving plate 51, and is connected to each drive shaft 4
4,54.

In the above configuration, when the Y-movement micrometer head 60 is rotated, the Y-movement plate 51 moves in the Y direction, and the Y-movement base moves in the same direction, so the entire body except the vacuum casing 32 moves in the Y direction. do. Therefore, the sample 46 moves in the Y direction perpendicular to the electron beam optical axis. Next, when the X-dynamic drive micrometer head 62 is rotated, the tip of its spindle moves in the axial direction, and the X-dynamic drive shaft 44 moves in the Y-axis direction. The direction of this movement is changed by 90 degrees by the lever 43, and as can be seen from FIG. 3, it is applied to the X-movement stage 42 as movement in the X direction. Also, when the Z-moving micrometer head 63 is rotated, the shaft 54 moves in the Y direction.
The lever 55 and the cylindrical shaft 57 constituting the double shaft move in the same direction, and the lever 58 in contact with the end surface of the cylindrical shaft is moved in the Y direction. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the direction of this movement is changed by 90 degrees by the lever, resulting in movement in the Z direction perpendicular to Y and X, and is transmitted to the Z movement stage 40. In this way, the micrometer heads 60, 62,
When the sample 46 is rotated arbitrarily, the sample 46 can be moved freely in the X, Y, and Z directions, and a desired part can be observed with a scanning electron microscope. If you want to tilt the sample while it is moving arbitrarily, turn a knob (not shown) to turn the gear 37, and the rotation stage 35 will rotate around the axis of the X-movement drive shaft 44 via the gear 36. The Z-movement stage 40 and the X-movement stage 42 supported by the tilting stage 35 rotate together around the Y-axis. Thereby, the sample 46 is tilted with respect to the Y-axis, allowing oblique observation. When tilting, the levers 43 and 5 for X movement and Y movement
8 rotates around the tilting axis, but the lever only rotates integrally with each stage 42 and 40 while contacting the end faces of the shaft 44 and the cylindrical shaft 57 that constitute the double shaft, and when tilting, the It does not cause any Z motion. Therefore, it is possible to tilt the sample at a large angle.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main parts showing another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a triple axis is formed, and the movement of the sample in X, Y, and Z is provided by movement of each axis of the triple axis. In the figure, reference numeral 70 denotes a Y-movement drive axis, which is disposed at the centermost position along the tilt axis (Y-axis) and provides movement to a Y-movement stage (not shown). A cylindrical shaft 71 for X-motion drive is fitted into the Y-movement drive shaft, and a lever 72 is engaged with the end surface of the cylindrical shaft 71 . The lever engages the X motion stage and moves the sample in the X direction. Reference numeral 73 denotes a cylindrical shaft for Z motion driving, which is fitted into the cylindrical shaft 71. A lever 74 for Z movement is engaged with the end face of the shaft, and movement in the Y direction is converted to the Z direction.
transmitted to the motion stage. All of these or levers 7
2 and 74 are held on a sample tilting stage, and can be tilted arbitrarily. Even if X, Y, and Z movements are configured to be performed using triple axes in this manner, mutual interference between the respective movement axes does not occur when the sample is tilted, and accurate tilting over a large angle is possible.

[Effects] With the configuration described in detail above, the driving sleeves and the like will not become entangled when the sample is tilted, and the sample can be tilted at a large angle and with high precision. Moreover, most parts can be brought into rolling contact, and there is no need to apply lubricant to the sliding contact parts as in the conventional case, thus completing a sample device with less sample contamination. In addition, especially for X, Y, and Z movements, only linear movements need to be introduced into the vacuum chamber, so the movement mechanism is simple and a metal bellows can be used as a vacuum seal, making it possible to obtain an ultra-high vacuum sample chamber. It will be done. Therefore, the sample device of the present invention can be used as a sample device for ultra-high vacuum devices such as Auger electron analyzers, and is highly effective.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating the outline of a conventional sample device for a scanning electron microscope, FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a portion of FIG. The figure is a perspective view of main parts showing another embodiment of the present invention. 32: Vacuum housing, 34: Y motion base, 35: Incline stage, 36, 37: Gear, 40: Z motion stage, 42: X motion stage, 43, 58: Lever, 4
4: X dynamic drive shaft, 46: Sample, 51: Y dynamic moving plate, 52a, 52b: Support column, 53a, 53b: Bellows, 54: Z dynamic drive shaft, 55: Lever, 5
6,59: Bellows, 57: Cylindrical shaft, 60,6
2,63: Drive micrometer head.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 When the direction of the optical axis of an electron beam, etc. is called the Z direction, the direction perpendicular to the Z direction is called the Y direction, and the direction perpendicular to the Z direction and the Y direction is called the A tilting body having an axis is attached to a sample chamber, and a stage providing movement in the X direction and a stage providing movement in the Z direction are both placed on the tilting body, and the tilting body is mounted or A stage is provided that is placed on the body to provide movement in the Y direction, and double shafts that are both movable in the Y direction are arranged concentrically with the tilt axis of the tilt body, and one of the double shafts is arranged concentrically with the tilt axis of the tilt body. A first lever for converting the movement of the axis into movement of the stage in the X direction is interposed between the optical axis side end of the shaft and the stage that provides movement in the X direction, and means for pressing the end along the axis, and the stage moves the axis between the optical axis side end of the other of the dual shafts and the stage that provides movement in the Z direction. A drive mechanism for moving the Y-direction moving stage, comprising means for pressing the other end of the other shaft along the axis, with a second lever interposed therebetween for converting the stage to move in the Z-direction. A sample device for an electron beam device, etc., comprising: 2. The sample device for electron beams, etc. according to claim 1, wherein the stage for providing movement in the Y direction is provided with the tilting body placed thereon. 3 A stage that provides movement in the Y direction is mounted on the tilting body, and a stage that provides movement in the Y direction is provided.
The mechanism for moving the stage that provides movement in the Y direction includes a third shaft that is provided concentrically with the double shaft and that is connected to the stage that provides movement in the Y direction at its end on the optical axis side. Claim 1
Sample device for electron beam, etc. described in Section 2.