Substrate carrier system utilizing electrostatic chucking to accommodate substrate size heterogeneity

A method of processing a substrate, comprising:

• placing a first substrate onto a planar upper surface of a substrate carrier comprising a multi-layered disk having upper and lower layers formed of a continuous material and an electrostatic electrode structure disposed therebetween, wherein the multi-layered disk is formed symmetrically about a central axis and defines a planar upper surface;
• placing a second substrate onto the planar upper surface of the substrate carrier;
• energizing the electrode structure using a voltage source to electrostatically hold the first and the second substrates in position on the planar upper surface of the substrate carrier;
• inserting the substrate carrier having the electrostatically held first and the second substrates into a process chamber;
• and
• performing a process on the electrostatically held first and the second substrates in the process chamber;
• wherein the electrode structure is a bipolar electrode structure comprising a continuous inner electrode having a center portion that forms a center portion of the electrode structure and a first group of electrostatic chuck elements that comprise finger-like elements extending radially outward from the center portion of the inner electrode and an outer electrode completely surrounding the inner electrode in a two-dimensional plane and having a second group of electrostatic chuck elements that comprise finger-like elements extending radially inward from an outer circumference of the outer electrode;
• and
• wherein respective ones of the finger-like elements of the second group of electrostatic chuck elements are interposed between adjacent ones of the finger-like elements of the first group of electrostatic chuck elements such that the inner electrode and the outer electrode are interdigitated.