Polishing head, polishing apparatus and polishing method for semiconductor wafer

A polishing head for holding a semiconductor wafer for polishing the semiconductor wafer by rubbing a surface of the wafer against a polishing pad attached on a turn table;

• the polishing head comprising:
• a disklike carrier for holding a back surface of the wafer;
• a guide ring for holding an edge portion of the wafer, the guide ring extending downward along an outer periphery of the carrier from a surface of the carrier holding the back surface of the wafer;
• a dress ring for pressing the polishing pad, the dress ring being located around the guide ring;
• a head body that holds the carrier, the guide ring, and the dress ring, the head body being rotatable and having a reversed-bowl shape with a hollow;
• a through-hole for holding the wafer by vacuum suction, the through-hole runs along a direction of a thickness of the carrier;
• a sucking mechanism for sucking the wafer, the sucking mechanism being in communication with the through-hole;
• an air providing mechanism for detaching the wafer from the carrier by spraying air on the back surface of the wafer via the through-hole;
• a back plate located over the carrier, and
• wherein the dress ring, and at least the guide ring or the carrier are held by being coupled to a lower brim of the head body via a diaphragm, sealing the hollow of the head body;
• the back plate is mounted on the dress ring via the diaphragm so that the hollow of the head body is separated into two chambers;
• the diaphragm is deformed elastically between the dress ring and the carrier during polishing by adjusting pressure of a lower chamber with a mechanism communicating with the lower chamber for adjusting pressing force of the wafer so as to adjust the pressing force of the wafer held by the carrier against the polishing pad;
• the wafer is polished while the diaphragm is deformed elastically by adjusting pressure of the sealed hollow with a pressure regulating mechanism so as to press with a given pressing force the wafer and the dress ring against the polishing pad on the turn table, the wafer held by the carrier and the dress ring are rotated, and the pressure regulating mechanism communicates with the hollow.