A commercial field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM) based around a miniature electron beam column includes an integrated electrostatic blanker, making the system well-suited for lithography. A previous version of the miniature column design demonstrated direct-write lithography with 70 nm lines and spaces written into resist. That column also demonstrated an 85 MHz blanking speed and a 6 nA beam current using a condenser lens. This article presents a study of the field emission SEM's integrated blanking system, including measurements and simulations of the electron beam optics. Rise and settle times are discussed, as well as beam extinction ratios under various operating conditions. The column's conjugate blanking optics are described, and measurements are presented, which suggest that the column may be used in a conjugate blanking mode for lithography. Finally, this article discusses how these results will feedback into the system design in order to improve the SEM's existing lithography capabilities. (C) 2010 American Vacuum Society. [DOI: 10.1116/1.3502437]