Cerium oxide abrasives for chemical mechanical polishing
OwnerRobert Small, Christopher Haydeninventors
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Abstract
The use of mixed cerium-containing synthetic solid abrasive materials in chemical mechanical polishing slurries can provide better selectivity, better substrate removal rates, or lower defect rates than conventional ceria slurries. The slurries have abrasive particles that include a plurality of solid cerium-containing phases selected from CeO2, Ce2O3, cerium-nitride material, cerium-fluoride material, and cerium-sulfide material, where different cerium-containing materials are present in different particles or on the same particles.
Claims21
A method of chemically mechanically polishing a substrate which comprises a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal, comprising the steps of:
- A) providing a polishing slurry comprising:
- 1) a synthetic abrasive material comprising at least one of
- particles comprising CeO2 and particles comprising Ce2O3,
- particles comprising CeO2 and particles comprising cerium nitride,
- particles comprising CeO2 and particles comprising cerium oxynitride,
- particles comprising CeO2 and particles comprising cerium fluoride, or
- particles comprising CeO2 and particles comprising ceric sulfide, and
- 2) a solvent comprising water, a polar organic solvent, a non-polar organic solvent, or mixture thereof, and
- B) providing a substrate having a surface comprising a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal;
- and
- C) movably contacting the polishing slurry with the surface under conditions where a portion of the substrate is removed by a chemical mechanical polishing process.
A method of chemically mechanically polishing a substrate which comprises a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal, comprising the steps of:
- A) providing a polishing slurry comprising:
- 1) a synthetic abrasive material comprising any of
- particles comprising Ce2O3 and particles comprising cerium nitride and/or cerium oxynitride,
- particles comprising Ce2O3 and particles comprising cerium fluoride, or
- particles comprising Ce2O3 and particles comprising cerium sulfide, and
- 2) a solvent comprising water, a polar organic solvent, a non-polar organic solvent, or mixture thereof, and
- B) providing a substrate having a surface comprising a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal;
- and:
- C) movably contacting the polishing slurry with the surface under conditions where a portion of the substrate is removed by a chemical mechanical polishing process.
A method of chemically mechanically polishing a substrate which comprises a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal, comprising the steps of:
- A) providing a polishing slurry comprising:
- 1) a synthetic abrasive material comprising any of
- particles comprising both CeO2 and Ce2O3 phases,
- particles comprising both CeO2 and cerium nitride and/or cerium oxynitride phases,
- particles comprising both CeO2 and ceric fluoride phases, or
- particles comprising both CeO2 and ceric sulfide phases particles, and
- 2) a solvent comprising water, a polar organic solvent, a non-polar organic solvent, or mixture thereof, and
- B) providing a substrate having a surface comprising a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal;
- and
- C) movably contacting the polishing slurry with the surface under conditions where a portion of the substrate is removed by a chemical mechanical polishing process.
A method of chemically mechanically polishing a substrate which comprises a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal, comprising the steps of:
- A) providing a polishing slurry comprising:
- a synthetic particle comprising a plurality of cerium materials selected from CeO2, Ce2O3, cerium nitride, cerium oxynitride, cerium fluoride, and cerium sulfide materials, and
- a solvent comprising water, a polar organic solvent, a non-polar organic solvent, or mixture thereof, and
- B) providing a substrate having a surface comprising a dielectric material and a material comprising a metal;
- and
- C) movably contacting the polishing slurry with the surface under conditions where a portion of the substrate is removed by a chemical mechanical polishing process.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.