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US 7,029,596 B2Granted
Computer integrated manufacturing control system for oxide chemical mechanical polishing
AssigneeTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.
InventorsHeng Chang Hsieh, Wen-Cheng Chien
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Abstract
A new method is provided that extends the process of automation of the CMP process by monitoring the in-line removal rate, by using methods of curve-fitting that enable a reduction in the frequency of monitoring the removal rate of the CMP process, by enhancing the life expectancy of the polishing pad thereby further reducing the frequency of the required Preventive Maintenance and by allowing for the polishing of non-standard lots of wafers.
Claims5
A method to determine a next base remove rate for polishing following lots of product, comprising:
- providing a specification range and a control limit range within the specification range;
- using a formula with previously-determined base remove rates to estimate the next base remove rate when a current base remove rate is within the control limit range;
- and
- polishing a monitor wafer to determine a remove rate as the next base remove rate when the current base remove rate is within the specification range but outside the control limit range.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.