Electron projection lithography (EPL) is a realistic technology for the 65 nm node and below. as a complementary technology of optical lithography especially for contacts and gate layers because of its high resolution and large process margin. Nikon has developed an EPL exposure tool as an electron-beam (EB) stepper and the first generation EB stepper; NSR-EB1A is now almost completed as an R&D tool for the 65 nm technology node. Using a phi200 mm reticle. a 20 mm x 25 mm exposure field is realized. Full-field exposure performance of NSR-EB1A is shown. A 70 nm isolated line and 1: 1 nested lines are simultaneously resolved, as are 50 nm 1:2 nested lines. 60 nm contact holes are resolved with a depth of focus over a 10 mum range and dosage window over +/-6%. Stitching accuracy is about 20 nm (3sigma) and the single machine overlay is about 30 rim (mean +3 sigma). These data mean sufficient performance for device manufacturing of the 65 nm technology node. The concept of a large subfield is one candidate for resolution and throughput enhancement in EPL production tool. The Coulomb blur is directly measured by an aerial image, sensor for a large subfield and small beam half-angle, and the data show good agreement with simulations. It is shown that throughput over 20 wafers per hour (phi300 mm) is realistic and achievable in a production tool of a 45 nm technology node. (C) 2004 American Vacuum Society.