A charged particle beam detection system that includes a Faraday cup
detector array (FCDA) for position-sensitive charged particle beam
detection is described. The FCDA is combined with an electronic
multiplexing unit (MUX) that allows collecting and integrating the charge
deposited in the array, and simultaneously reading out the same. The duty
cycle for collecting the ions is greater than 98%. This multiplexing is
achieved by collecting the charge with a large number of small and
electronically decoupled Faraday cups. Because Faraday cups collect the
charge independent of their charge state, each cup is both a collector
and an integrator. The ability of the Faraday cup to integrate the
charge, in combination with the electronic multiplexing unit, which reads
out and empties the cups quickly compared to the charge integration time,
provides the almost perfect duty cycle for this position-sensitive
charged particle detector. The device measures further absolute ion
currents, has a wide dynamic range from 1.7 pA to 1.2 .mu.A with a
crosstalk of less than 750:1. The integration of the electronic
multiplexing unit with the FCDA further allows reducing the number of
feedthroughs that are needed to operate the detector.