Comparison of chemical-mechanical polishing processes
AssigneeMosel Vitelic, Inc.
InventorKuo-Chun Wu
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Chemical-mechanical polishing (“CMP”) processes performed on bodies (10), each having areas (16 and 18) of different depression pattern densities, are compared by correlating polishing data accumulated, for one such body, on an area (16) of one pattern density to polishing data accumulated, for that body, on an area of another pattern density for each of the CMP processes.
Claims23
A method performed with at least one first body and at least one second body, each first body having an internal surface provided with (a1) a first pattern of at least one depression at a first depression pattern density in a first lateral area and (b1) a second pattern of at least one depression at a second depression pattern density in a second lateral area, the depression pattern densities being different, each second body having an internal surface provided with (a2) a first pattern of at least one depression largely at the first depression pattern density in a first lateral area and (b2) a second pattern of at least one depression largely at the second depression pattern density in a second lateral area, a depression-occupying layer of each body substantially covering its internal surface and extending into its one or more depressions, the method comprising:
- determining first and second values of erosion that respectively occur along the first and second areas of each first body generally at its one or more depressions at each of at least one processing point as a result of chemically-mechanically polishing each first body along its depression-occupying layer according to a first chemical-mechanical polishing (“CMP”) process;
- generating correlation information for the first CMP process by correlating the second value of erosion at each processing point for each first body to the first value of erosion at that processing point for that first body;
- determining first and second values of erosion that respectively occur along the first and second areas of each second body generally at its one or more depressions at each of at least one processing point as a result of chemically-mechanically polishing each second body along its depression-occupying layer according to a second CMP process different from the first CMP process;
- generating correlation information for the second CMP process by correlating the second value of erosion at each processing point for each second body to the first value of erosion at that processing point for that second body;
- and
- comparing the correlation information for the second CMP process to the correlation information for the first CMP process.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.