Apparatus and methods for controlling wafer temperature in chemical mechanical polishing

A method of monitoring the temperature of a wafer during chemical mechanical polishing operations, the method comprising the operations of:

• defining at least one separate area of a surface of the wafer, wherein a particular temperature is to be maintained on the at least one separate area;
• mounting the wafer for chemical mechanical polishing operations with the at least one separate area in a predetermined orientation;
• and
• sensing the temperature of the at least one separate area.

A method of controlling local planarization properties on a wafer during the performance of chemical mechanical polishing operations on a wafer, the method comprising the operations of:

• defining at least one separate area of a surface of the wafer at which a particular planarization property is to be achieved on the at least one separate area;
• contacting a polishing pad with a surface of the wafer in one of the chemical mechanical polishing operations, the polishing pad having different chemical mechanical polishing performance according to different temperatures of the polishing pad;
• and
• controlling the temperature of the at least one separate area of the wafer so that the wafer in contact with the polishing pad transfers thermal energy relative to the polishing pad to the change local temperatures of the polishing pad in contact with the wafer.

Apparatus for controlling local planarization properties on a wafer during the performance of at least one chemical mechanical polishing operation on the wafer,

• a wafer carrier;
• a thermal energy transfer unit on the wafer carrier for transferring energy relative to the wafer;
• a thermal energy detector system adjacent to the wafer for detecting temperature;
• and
• a controller responsive to the detector system for controlling the supply of thermal energy to the thermal energy transfer unit.