System comprising a multi-beam particle microscope and method for operating the same

A system, comprising:

• i) a multi-beam particle microscope configured to image a 3D sample, the multi-beam particle microscope comprising:
• a) a multi-beam source configured to generate a first array of a plurality of first particle beams;
• b) first particle optics configured to direct the first particle beams onto an object so that the first particle beams are incident at locations of incidence on the object, which define a second array;
• c) a member selected from the group consisting of a detector comprising a plurality of detection regions and a plurality of detectors which each have at least one detection region, the detection regions being arranged in a third array, the member comprising a plurality of transducers, a transducer being assigned to each detection region and configured to generate an electrical signal representing a particle intensity incident on the detection region, the plurality of detection regions and the assigned plurality of transducers defining a plurality of detection channels, respectively, the detection channels being assigned to a plurality of detection channel groups;
• d) second particle optics configured to direct second particle beams emitted from locations of incidence in the second array to the third array of detection regions so that each second particle beam is incident on at least one of the detection regions arranged in the third array;
• and
• e) a controller configured to control the multi-beam particle microscope;
• and
• ii) a computer system, comprising:
• a) a first tier comprising a first plurality of processing systems configured to process data;
• and
• b) a second tier comprising a second plurality of processing systems configured to process data,
• wherein:
• each processing system of the first plurality of processing systems is configured to receive detection signals exclusively from an assigned detection channel group;
• the first plurality of processing systems is configured to process data basically or entirely without any data exchange between different processing systems of the first plurality of processing systems;
• the second plurality of processing systems is configured to receive data from at least one of the plurality of first processing systems;
• and
• the second plurality of processing systems is configured to process data comprising a data exchange between different processing systems of the second tier.