The major difference with a focused ion beam system is the use of a different particle to create the primary beam that interacts with the sample. As the name FIB indicates, ions are used instead of electrons. In a scanning electron microscope (SEM) , electrons are accelerated and focused onto the sample surface. The beam can be scanned over the sample surface to create an image, or can be controlled by a patterning function to locally expose the sample to the beam, as for example used in e-beam lithography.

V400ACE

The V400ACE™ Focused Ion Beam (FIB) system incorporates the latest developments in ion column design, gas delivery and end point detection to provide fast, efficient, cost-effective editing on advanced integrated circuits. Circuit editing allows product designers to reroute conductive pathways and test the modified circuits in hours, rather than the weeks or months that would be required to generate new masks and process new wafers.

V600 and V600CE

These same basic functions are found in a focused ion beam system, such as FEI's V600 line of FIBs . The V600™ focused ion beam (FIB) system  provides a complete solution for general-purpose edit and debug. Based on the field-proven success of FEI’s FIB 200, the V600FIB offers the next generation of flexibility and performance required for effective cross-sectioning, imaging and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sample preparation. The V600CE™ focused ion beam (FIB) system  incorporates the latest developments in ion column design, gas delivery and end point detection to provide fast, efficient, cost-effective editing on advanced integrated circuits at the 65 nm technology node and beyond.