Oscillating orbital polisher and method
AssigneeSpeedFam-IPEC Corporation
InventorsJohn A. Adams, Everett D. Smith, Stephen C. Schultz
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for improving uniformity of the rate of removal of material from the surface of a semiconductor substrate by chemical mechanical polishing. In accordance with the invention, the semiconductor substrate is subjected to a combination of polishing motions, including orbital motion, and at least one additional polishing motion selected from rotational, oscillating, sweeping, and linear polishing motions. The invention also provides an improved method for conditioning polishing pads to provide more uniform conditioning and to extend their useful life span.
Claims27
A semiconductor wafer polishing method comprising simultaneously subjecting a surface of the semiconductor wafer to three types of polishing motion, the three types of polishing motion comprising orbital polishing motion, and at least two other polishing motions selected from the group consisting of rotational, oscillating, sweeping and linear polishing motions wherein a polishing pad is moved in an orbital and oscillating polishing motion and the semiconductor wafer is moved in a rotational polishing motion.
A method of polishing a thin film formed on a semiconductor substrate, the method comprising:
- (a) simultaneously imparting at least partial rotary motion and orbital motion to a polishing pad;
- (b) polishing the thin film of the substrate with the moving polishing pad's surface and a polishing slurry;
- and
- (c) maintaining the polishing while applying a sufficient pressure between polishing pad and semiconductor substrate to polish the semiconductor substrate.
A method of polishing a thin film formed on a semiconductor substrate, the method comprising:
- (a) at least partially rotating a wafer carrier about a central axis while orbiting the wafer carrier about an orbital axis, the orbital axis displaced from a central axis of the wafer carrier, the wafer carrier holding the semiconductor substrate;
- and
- (b) polishing the thin film of the substrate against a polishing pad surface with the aid of a polishing slurry while applying pressure between pad and substrate, wherein the polishing pad is moved in an orbital and oscillating motion and the semiconductor substrate is moved in a rotational motion.
A method of conditioning a polishing pad of an apparatus for planarizing semiconductor wafers by chemical mechanical polishing, the method comprising:
- subjecting a polishing surface of the pad to simultaneous orbital motion and at least partial rotational movement while conditioning the pad.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.