JP2002337046A - Polishing device, polishing method and method for manufacturing semiconductor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To polish an object to be polished such as a semiconductor wafer with a satisfactory flatness and in-plane uniformity at a low cost. SOLUTION: In the case of polishing an object 14 to be polished with an abrasive cloth 13, a surface shape of the abrasive cloth 13 is measured after polishing or during polishing, and a condition of flattering processing of the abrasive cloth 13 is optimized by feeding back the measurement results. Flattering processing of the abrasive cloth 13 is performed under the optimized condition. Using the abrasive cloth 13 treated with this flattering processing, a semiconductor wafer or the like is polished, for example. A contact-type or non- contact type measuring device is used for measurement of the surface shape of the abrasive cloth 13.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a polishing apparatus, a polishing method, and a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, and more particularly to a polishing apparatus suitable for polishing a surface to be polished of a thin plate-like material to be polished such as a semiconductor wafer. is there.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, as the integration of LSIs has become higher, the internal wiring has become finer and more multilayered, and accordingly, flattening techniques have become important techniques. One of the planarization techniques is chemical mechanical polishing (Chemical Mechanical Polishing,
CMP) method, which has already been put to practical use.

FIG. 12 shows a conventional CMP apparatus. FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, in this CMP apparatus, a surface plate 10 rotatable around an axis 101 by a rotation mechanism (not shown).
2, a polishing cloth, that is, a pad 103 is fixed with a double-sided tape or the like. The object to be polished 1 is placed on the pad 103.
A polishing head 105 that holds the wafer 04 is installed so as to be vertically movable by a cylinder 106 and rotatable around a shaft 107. Here, the object to be polished 104 is attached to the polishing head 10 via the suction film 108 for suction holding and buffering.
5 is held. Further, a retainer ring 109 for preventing the object to be polished 104 from jumping out of the polishing head 105 is provided on an outer peripheral portion of the polishing head 105. Above the pad 103, an abrasive supply line 110 is provided.

On the pad 103, a pad conditioner 111 for flattening and uniformizing the surface of the pad 103 roughened by polishing is rotatable around an axis 112 and movable in a horizontal plane by an arm 113. It is installed in. FIG. 13 shows pad conditioner 1.
11 schematically shows the configuration of the eleventh embodiment. Here, FIG. 13A is a plan view, FIG. 13B is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 13A,
FIG. 13C is an enlarged view of the diamond dresser section.
As shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B, the pad conditioner 111 has a structure in which a concentric annular diamond dresser 202 is attached to an outer peripheral portion of one main surface of a circular stainless steel (SUS) plate 201. FIG.
As shown in C, the diamond dresser 202 has a nickel (Ni) film 202a formed on a plate 201 by vapor deposition, and diamond particles 202b to be abrasive grains formed thereon by vapor deposition. However, the diamond dresser 202 may be one in which a plating process or the like is directly performed on the plate 201 and diamond particles 202b are formed thereon by vapor deposition.

Next, a description will be given of a method of performing polishing by the CMP apparatus configured as described above. That is, at the time of polishing, the object to be polished 104, for example, a semiconductor wafer, is held by the polishing head 105, and the polishing head 105 and the platen 102 are moved while the slurry-like abrasive 114 is supplied from the abrasive supply line 110 onto the pad 103. The polishing head 105 is lowered by the cylinder 106 while rotating around the shaft 107 and the shaft 101, respectively. Then, after the polishing head 105 comes into contact with the pad 102, polishing is performed by further applying pressure.

If necessary, the pad conditioner 111 is rotated while being pressed against the pad 103 alone or at the time other than the polishing to grind the surface of the pad 103, which is roughened by polishing.
Make it even.

[0007]

However, in the above-described conventional CMP apparatus, after the surface of the pad 103 is ground by the pad conditioner 111, a film on a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as a semiconductor wafer) is formed as the object 104 to be polished. However, there is a problem that even if the semiconductor wafer is simply polished, the surface thereof is non-uniformly polished and unacceptable uneven steps remain.

[0008] As described above, in the CMP process, which is one of the main processes in the semiconductor device manufacturing process, the semiconductor wafer cannot be polished within desired specifications, so that the yield of the semiconductor device decreases. Further, since it is necessary to frequently exchange consumables such as the pads 103, productivity is reduced, expendables are increased, and the manufacturing cost of the semiconductor device is significantly increased.

The present inventor has conducted intensive studies in order to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art.
In the MP apparatus, even if a semiconductor wafer is polished, for example, as the object to be polished 104, the surface thereof is unevenly polished in spite of the use of the pad conditioner 111. When grinding the pad 103 with 111, the shaft 1
It has been found that a slight displacement occurs due to the mechanical accuracy of the arm 12, the arm 113, the surface plate 102, and the like, and the surface of the pad 103 is unevenly ground.

FIG. 14 shows the results of measurement of the surface shape of a pad as a change in the remaining pad thickness with respect to the distance from the center of the pad after various times of initial polishing and polishing in a conventional CMP apparatus. FIG. 15 shows the relationship between the pad conditioning time and the pad surface shape when the polishing time is fixed (60 minutes). From FIG. 14, it can be seen that the surface of the pad is polished unevenly, so that the surface of the pad that has been polished for 4 hours or more has large irregularities with a height of about 0.1 mm. It can be seen that the difference tends to increase. FIG. 15 shows that even if pad conditioning is performed for a certain period of time, it is difficult to flatten the surface of the pad.

If the surface shape of the pad is poor as described above, the in-plane uniformity (indicator indicating how uniformly the semiconductor wafer was polished) and the surface are polished when polishing the object to be polished, for example, a semiconductor wafer. The flatness (an index indicating how flat the semiconductor wafer is polished) deteriorates. If the polishing process is further continued, the surface shape of the pad becomes uneven, so that the polishing characteristics are further deteriorated.

FIG. 16 shows the in-plane distribution and the in-plane uniformity of the polishing rate of a semiconductor wafer when polishing is performed using the pad 103 having an uneven surface shape as shown in FIG. FIG. 16 shows that the in-plane distribution and the in-plane uniformity of the polishing rate are very poor. In the worst case, reproducibility of the polishing characteristics of the semiconductor wafer cannot be obtained.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a polishing apparatus and a polishing method capable of polishing an object to be polished such as a semiconductor wafer with good surface flatness and in-plane uniformity at a low cost, and a polishing method therefor. An object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing a semiconductor device using a polishing method.

[0014]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a polishing apparatus for polishing an object to be polished using a polishing cloth. Is measured, and the surface of the polishing pad is flattened in accordance with the measurement result.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in a polishing method for polishing an object to be polished using a polishing cloth, the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured, and the surface of the polishing cloth is measured in accordance with the measurement result. The flattening process is performed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a semiconductor device having a step of polishing an object to be polished using a polishing cloth, wherein a surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured, and polishing is performed in accordance with the measurement result. The present invention is characterized in that the surface of the cloth is flattened.

In the present invention, the measurement of the surface shape of the polishing cloth may be performed after polishing (for example, immediately after polishing of each object to be polished), during polishing, or after polishing and during polishing. Both may be performed. The polishing apparatus typically has a measuring means for measuring the surface shape of the polishing cloth and a flattening means for flattening the surface of the polishing cloth. Based on the information on the surface shape of the polishing cloth obtained by this measuring means, or feedback the information on the surface shape of the polishing cloth,
The flattening process of the polishing pad is performed by setting the flattening process conditions to optimal conditions so that a desired surface shape is obtained. This optimum condition is a condition under which the surface of the polishing pad is flattened and a predetermined amount of grinding is performed on the entire surface of the polishing pad with the elapse of the flattening processing time. Then, if necessary, the object to be polished is polished by setting the polishing conditions to optimal conditions based on the planarization processing conditions.

As the measuring means for measuring the surface shape of the polishing cloth, various means can be used as long as sufficient measurement accuracy can be obtained, and any of a contact type and a non-contact type may be used. . The contact type measuring means (for example, a stylus type) is provided movably with respect to the polishing cloth, for example, in a state where the tip thereof is in contact with the surface of the polishing cloth. Then, by the movement of the measuring means, the surface shape of the polishing cloth in the moving direction is measured. This measuring means may be provided so as to be movable independently of the flattening means, or may be provided integrally with the holding portion of the flattening means. The non-contact type measuring means (for example, optical type) measures the surface shape of the polishing cloth by irradiating the surface of the polishing cloth with light, typically a laser beam. Is a laser displacement meter or the like.

The polishing may be basically any polishing method using a polishing cloth, but is typically chemical mechanical polishing (CMP). In addition, the object to be polished may be basically any type, but typically, is a thin plate-shaped object to be polished such as various semiconductor wafers or a glass plate for a liquid crystal display (LCD). .

According to the present invention constructed as described above, for example, after polishing and / or during polishing, the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured, and the surface of the polishing cloth is flattened according to the measurement result. Thus, the surface of the polishing cloth can be always kept flat and in a good surface shape.

[0021]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In all the drawings of the embodiments, the same or corresponding portions are denoted by the same reference numerals. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the overall configuration of the CMP apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, this CMP apparatus mainly comprises a polishing unit 1 for polishing an object to be polished such as a semiconductor wafer, and an abrasive supply unit 2 for supplying an abrasive onto a pad in the polishing unit 1. A pad shape measuring unit 3 for measuring the surface shape of the pad in the polishing unit 1, a cleaning unit 4 for cleaning and drying the object to be polished after polishing, and HF, N used in the cleaning unit 4.
A chemical supply unit 5 for supplying a cleaning chemical such as H ₃ ,
And a transfer unit 6 for the object to be polished.

FIG. 2 shows the configuration of the polishing unit 1. The basic configuration of the polishing unit 1 is a conventional CMP shown in FIG.
Same as the device. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, a pad 13 is fixed with a double-sided tape or the like on a surface plate 12 rotatable around a shaft 11 by a rotation mechanism not shown. On the pad 13, a polishing head unit 15 having a polishing head 15 a for holding an object to be polished 14 is installed so as to be vertically movable by a cylinder 16 and rotatable around a shaft 17. The object to be polished 14 is held by the polishing head 15a via the suction film 18 for suction holding and buffering. A retainer ring 19 is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the polishing head 15a to prevent the workpiece 14 from jumping out of the polishing head 15a. Above the pad 13, an abrasive supply line 20 is provided. The abrasive supply line 20 is connected to the abrasive supply unit 2.

On the pad 13, a pad conditioner 21 for flattening and uniformizing the surface of the pad 13 roughened by polishing is rotatable around an axis 22 and movable in a horizontal plane by an arm 23. is set up. As the pad conditioner 21, for example, one having the same configuration as that shown in FIG. 13 is used.

FIG. 3 shows the pad shape measuring unit 3.
As shown in FIG. 3, the pad shape measuring unit 3 includes pad shape measuring stands 31 and 32 provided independently of the polishing unit 1 and a pad shape measuring stand 32.
And a contact-type pad shape measuring device 33 attached to one end of the device so as to face the pad 13. In order to measure the surface shape of the pad 13 by the pad shape measuring unit 3, for example, the pad shape measuring device 33 is moved to the center of the surface plate 12 while the surface plate 12 is stationary, and the pad shape is measured. While the measuring device 33 is in contact with the surface of the pad 13, the pad shape measuring stand 32 is turned around the pad shape measuring stand 31 in the radial direction of the surface plate 12. Accordingly, the pad shape measuring device 33 moves from the center of the pad 13 to the outermost periphery thereof while contacting the surface of the pad 13, so that the surface shape of the pad 13 in the radial direction can be measured. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 34 denotes an axis, 3
Reference numeral 5 denotes a shaft cover. Reference numeral 36 indicates a retracted (standby) position when the pad 13 is not used.

The transport unit 6 is configured to sequentially load the objects to be polished from the cassette 7, and then unload the polished objects into the cassette 8 after polishing in the polishing unit 1 and cleaning in the cleaning unit 4.

Next, a method of using the CMP apparatus configured as described above will be described. FIG. 4 shows a CMP processing flow. As shown in FIG. 4, first, before the CMP process, the pad 1 was measured by the pad shape measuring device 33 as described above.
3. Measure the surface profile in the radial direction. Next, the unevenness amount of the surface of the pad 13 is measured from the obtained pad surface shape. If this unevenness amount is equal to or less than a predetermined allowable value, for example, 10 μm or less, the CMP process is performed as it is, and if it is 10 μm or more, the pad shape optimization simulation is performed. In this pad shape optimization simulation, the pad conditioner condition is changed to an optimum value obtained from the obtained pad surface shape, pad conditioner shape characteristics, current rotation speed, sweep width, and the like. These series of operations can be processed in a closed loop, and all the information obtained is
The information is fed back as processing information for the next and subsequent times. At this time, the polishing conditions are reset as necessary to satisfy the desired CMP processing specifications. Further, this flow is repeated, and the CMP process is performed while the surface of the pad 13 is constantly conditioned to be flat.

The flow from the surface shape measurement of the pad 13 to the CMP process will be described more specifically. That is, first, the surface shape in the radial direction of the pad 13 on which the pad conditioning has been performed is measured by the pad shape measuring device 33. As a result, as shown in FIG. 15, it is assumed that the surface of the pad 13 is not ground flat and the surface shape is bad. Then, it is assumed that the in-plane distribution and the in-plane uniformity of the polishing rate when the semiconductor wafer is polished using the pad 13 having the bad surface shape are poor as shown in FIG. The pad conditioning conditions at this time are as follows.

Pad Conditioning Condition A Number of rotations of pad conditioner 115 rpm Number of sweeps 10 Sweep / min Sweep range 36.83 mm to 233.68 mm Zone conditioning time (sec) 1 0.87 2 0.75 3 0.5 4 0.4 5 0.35 6 0.35 7 0.35 8 0.69 9 0.91 10 0.83 Load of polishing head 6 lbf Slurry flow rate 195 ml / min

However, the sweep range of the pad conditioner 21 on the pad 13 was equally divided into ten, and the conditioning time of each divided section was shown. The sweep zone was counted in order from the center of the pad with reference to the center of the pad conditioner 21.

Therefore, from the pad surface shape shown in FIG. 15, the conditioning time of the sweep zone in which the surface of the pad 13 can be cut flat is optimized by simulation or the like. The optimized pad conditioning conditions are as follows.

Pad conditioning condition B Number of rotations of pad conditioner 115 rpm Number of sweeps 10 Sweep / min Sweep range 36.83 mm to 233.68 mm Zone conditioning time (sec) 1 0.73 2 0.66 3 0.62 4 0.52 5 0.52 6 0.52 7 0.5 8 0.62 9 0.74 10 0.57 Load of polishing head 6 lbf Slurry flow rate 195 ml / min

Next, in order to adjust the pad scraping amount, the number of sweeps is optimized to obtain a desired pad scraping amount based on the pad scraping amount when the pad conditioning condition is A. The pad conditioning conditions at this time are as follows.

Pad conditioning condition C Number of rotations of pad conditioner 115 rpm Number of sweeps 6 Sweep / min Sweep range 36.83 mm to 233.68 mm Zone conditioning time (sec) 1 0.44 2 0.40 3 0.37 4 0.31 5 0.31 6 0.31 7 0.30 8 0.37 9 0.45 10 0.34 Load of polishing head 6 lbf Slurry flow rate 195 ml / min

As described above, when the number of sweeps is optimized, the conditioning time also changes, but the time ratio of each sweep zone does not change. That is, the time ratio of the pad conditioner in each sweep zone when the pad conditioning condition is B and when the pad conditioning condition is C is the same.

Next, pad conditioning is performed using the pad conditioning condition C optimized as described above. In this pad conditioning,
Specifically, the pad conditioner 21 is
It grinds by rotating while pressing it against.

Then, the surface of the semiconductor wafer as the object to be polished 14 is polished by using the pad 13 which has been subjected to the pad conditioning under the optimum conditions as described above. This polishing is specifically performed as follows. That is,
As shown in FIG. 2, a semiconductor wafer is held as a polishing object 14 by a polishing head 15 a, and a polishing head 15 a and a platen 12 The polishing head 15a is lowered by the cylinder 16 while rotating around the shaft 17 and the shaft 11, respectively. Then, after the polishing head 15a comes into contact with the pad 13, the polishing is performed by further applying pressure. As the polishing agent 24, an aqueous solution containing, for example, silica or alumina is used.

FIG. 5 shows the CMP according to the first embodiment.
The results of measuring the surface shape of the pad initially and after various times of polishing in the apparatus as a change in the remaining pad thickness with respect to the distance from the center are shown. FIG. 6 shows the relationship between the pad conditioning time and the pad surface shape when the polishing time is constant (60 minutes). FIG.
As is clear from the comparison with FIG. 13, in the first embodiment, the unevenness of the surface of the pad 13 is 0.05 m.
m, which indicates that the surface of the pad is extremely flat. Further, FIG. 6 shows that the surface of the pad 13 is uniformly ground and flattened extremely well regardless of the pad conditioning time.

FIG. 7 shows in-plane distribution and in-plane uniformity of a polishing rate of a semiconductor wafer (silicon wafer) when polishing is performed using the pad 13 having the surface shape shown in FIG. As is clear from the comparison of FIG. 7 with FIG. 16, the in-plane distribution and the in-plane uniformity of the polishing rate are extremely good, and it is understood that the polishing rate is greatly improved as compared with the related art.

FIG. 8 shows the in-plane distribution of unevenness on the surface of the semiconductor wafer when polishing is performed using the pad 13 having the flat surface shape shown in FIG.
The numbers in the semiconductor wafer in FIG. 8 indicate the numbers of the measurement points.
However, the polishing time was 60 seconds and the polishing amount was 281.75 n.
m, the polishing rate is 281.75 nm / min, the maximum polishing rate is 288.77 nm / min, the minimum polishing rate is 274.91 nm / min, and the uniformity inside and outside is 0.189%.
It is.

For comparison, FIG. 9 shows the in-plane distribution of unevenness on the surface of the semiconductor wafer when polishing is performed using the pad having a non-uniform and bad surface shape shown in FIG.
However, the polishing time was 60 seconds and the polishing amount was 291.46 n.
m, the polishing rate is 291.46 nm / min, the maximum polishing rate is 376.75 nm / min, the minimum polishing rate is 236.53 nm / min, and the inside and outside uniformity is 0.779%.
It is.

As is apparent from a comparison of FIG. 8 with FIG.
In the case of FIG. 9 in which polishing was performed using a pad having a poor surface shape, the difference in unevenness on the surface of the semiconductor wafer was extremely large and the in-plane uniformity was poor, whereas polishing was performed using a pad having a good surface shape. In the case shown in FIG. 8, the unevenness difference on the surface of the semiconductor wafer is extremely small and the in-plane uniformity is also very good.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, the surface shape of the pad 13 is measured by the pad shape measuring device 33, and the measurement result is fed back so that a flat surface shape can be obtained. By optimizing the conditioning conditions and performing the pad conditioning under the optimal conditions, the surface shape of the pad 13 can be made extremely flat.
By polishing the object to be polished 14, for example, a semiconductor wafer, using the pad 13 having good flatness, the flatness and the in-plane uniformity of the surface can be made very good, and the CMP The characteristics can be significantly improved. In addition, since the improvement in the CMP characteristics enables a CMP process with stricter specifications, it is possible to improve the yield and to cope with the next-generation and subsequent CMP processes. Further, by improving the CMP characteristics, it is possible to greatly reduce the frequency of replacement of the pad, which has been conventionally replaced when the polishing specification is no longer satisfied, so that the time required for the replacement is greatly reduced, and productivity is reduced. As a result, the cost for replacement is greatly reduced, and thus the cost can be reduced.

The polishing method according to the first embodiment is suitable for application to the case where CMP is used for flattening an interlayer insulating film when forming a multilayer wiring in a semiconductor device such as an LSI, for example. Since the surface of the semiconductor wafer can be satisfactorily planarized, the semiconductor device can be manufactured at a high yield and at low cost.

Next, C according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The MP device will be described. In the CMP apparatus according to the second embodiment, a pad shape measuring unit 3 that is different from the CMP apparatus according to the first embodiment is used. That is, the pad shape measuring unit 3 shown in FIG. 10 is used. As shown in FIG. 10, the pad shape measuring unit 3 includes a pad conditioner 2
A pad shape measuring jig 37 and a pad shape measuring device 33 are attached to one arm 23. To measure the surface shape of the pad 13 by the pad shape measuring unit 3, for example, the pad shape measuring device 33 is moved to the center of the surface plate 12 while the surface plate 12 is stationary, and the pad shape is measured. The arm 23 is turned in the radial direction of the platen 12 while the measuring device 33 is in contact with the surface of the pad 13. Accordingly, the pad shape measuring device 33 moves from the center of the pad 13 to the outermost periphery thereof while contacting the surface of the pad 13, so that the surface shape of the pad 13 in the radial direction can be measured. Other points are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the description is omitted. According to the second embodiment, the same advantages as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

Next, C according to the third embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The MP device will be described. In the CMP apparatus according to the third embodiment, a different pad shape measuring unit 3 from the CMP apparatuses according to the first and second embodiments is used. That is, the pad shape measuring unit 3
As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, in this pad shape measuring unit 3, the surface plate 1
A laser displacement gauge 38 is attached above the device 2 while being fixed to the apparatus main body, and the surface shape of the pad 13 is measured by the laser displacement gauge 38 in a non-contact manner. Specifically, the surface of the pad 13 is measured by irradiating the surface of the pad 13 with laser light 39 and measuring the path lengths of the incident light and the reflected light at that time to detect surface irregularities. Other points are the same as those of the first embodiment, and the description is omitted. According to the third embodiment, the same advantages as in the first embodiment can be obtained.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been specifically described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications based on the technical idea of the present invention are possible.

For example, the numerical values, structures, shapes, materials, and the like described in the above embodiments are merely examples, and different numerical values, structures, shapes, materials, and the like may be used as needed.

The configuration of the CMP apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and a different configuration may be used.

[0050]

As described above, according to the present invention, the surface shape of the polishing pad is measured, and the surface of the polishing pad is flattened according to the measurement result.
An object to be polished such as a semiconductor wafer can be polished with good flatness and in-plane uniformity at low cost. Then, by applying this polishing method to a polishing step in a semiconductor device manufacturing process, a semiconductor device can be manufactured with good yield and at low cost.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a CMP apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing a polishing unit of the CMP apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a pad shape measuring unit of the CMP apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of a polishing process performed by the CMP apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing a measurement result of a surface shape of a pad according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a measurement result of a surface shape of a pad after pad conditioning is performed in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing a measurement result of a surface shape after polishing of a semiconductor wafer in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing a measurement result of a surface shape after polishing of a semiconductor wafer in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram showing a measurement result of a surface shape after polishing a semiconductor wafer by a conventional CMP method for comparison in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a pad shape measuring unit of a CMP apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram illustrating a pad shape measuring unit of a CMP apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram illustrating a conventional CMP apparatus.

FIG. 13 is a plan view, a side view, and a main part enlarged view showing a pad conditioner in a conventional CMP apparatus.

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing a measurement result of a surface shape of a pad in a conventional CMP apparatus.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram illustrating a measurement result of a surface shape of a pad after performing pad conditioning in a conventional CMP apparatus.

FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram showing a measurement result of a surface shape after polishing of a semiconductor wafer in a conventional CMP apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... polishing unit, 2 ... abrasive supply unit,
3 ... Pad shape measurement unit, 4 ... Washing unit, 5 ... Chemical solution supply unit, 6 ... Transport unit, 12 ... Stable plate, 13 ... Pad, 14 ... Polishing Object, 15a: Polishing head, 21: Pad conditioner, 23: Arm, 33: Pad shape measuring machine, 38: Laser displacement meter, 39: Laser beam

Claims (25)

[Claims] 1. A polishing apparatus for polishing an object to be polished using a polishing cloth, wherein a surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured, and a flattening process of the surface of the polishing cloth is performed according to the measurement result. A polishing apparatus characterized in that the polishing is performed. 2. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured after and / or during polishing. 3. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising measuring means for measuring a surface shape of said polishing cloth, and flattening means for performing a flattening process on a surface of said polishing cloth. 4. A flattening process is performed on the surface of the polishing cloth by setting a flattening condition so as to obtain a desired surface shape based on information on the surface shape of the polishing cloth obtained by the measuring means. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein 5. The object to be polished is polished by setting polishing conditions based on the flattening processing conditions set so as to obtain the desired surface shape. The polishing apparatus according to the above. 6. The polishing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said measuring means is provided movably with respect to said polishing cloth in a state of being in contact with a surface of said polishing cloth. 7. The measuring means is provided integrally with the holding portion of the flattening means, and is provided movably with respect to the polishing cloth in a state of being in contact with the surface of the polishing cloth. The polishing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein 8. The polishing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said measuring means measures the surface shape of said polishing cloth by irradiating light to the surface of said polishing cloth. 9. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said polishing apparatus is a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus. 10. A polishing method in which an object to be polished is polished using a polishing cloth, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured, and the surface of the polishing cloth is flattened according to the measurement result. A polishing method characterized in that the polishing is performed. 11. The polishing method according to claim 10, wherein the surface shape of said polishing pad is measured after and / or during polishing. 12. A method for performing a flattening process on a surface of the polishing cloth by setting a flattening condition so as to obtain a desired surface shape based on information on a surface shape of the polishing cloth obtained by the measurement. The polishing method according to claim 10, wherein the polishing is performed. 13. The object to be polished is polished by setting polishing conditions based on the flattening processing conditions set so as to obtain the desired surface shape. The polishing method as described above. 14. A method for measuring the surface shape of the polishing cloth by moving a measuring means for measuring the surface shape of the polishing cloth with respect to the polishing cloth in a state of being in contact with the surface of the polishing cloth. The polishing method according to claim 10, wherein: 15. A measuring means for measuring a surface shape of the polishing cloth is provided integrally with a holder of the flattening means for performing a flattening process on the surface of the polishing cloth, and the measuring means is brought into contact with the surface of the polishing cloth. 11. The polishing method according to claim 10, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured by moving the polishing cloth in a state where the polishing cloth is moved. 16. The polishing method according to claim 10, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured by irradiating light to the surface of the polishing cloth. 17. The polishing method according to claim 10, wherein said polishing method is a chemical mechanical polishing method. 18. A method for manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising the step of polishing an object to be polished using a polishing cloth, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured, and the surface of the polishing cloth is flattened according to the measurement result. A method of manufacturing a semiconductor device, comprising: performing a chemical treatment. 19. The method of manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 18, wherein the surface shape of said polishing pad is measured after and / or during polishing. 20. A method for performing a flattening process on a surface of the polishing cloth by setting a flattening condition so as to obtain a desired surface shape based on information on a surface shape of the polishing cloth obtained by the measurement. 19. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 18, wherein: 21. The object to be polished is polished by setting polishing conditions based on the flattening processing conditions set so as to obtain the desired surface shape. The manufacturing method of the semiconductor device described in the above. 22. A method for measuring the surface shape of the polishing cloth by moving a measuring means for measuring the surface shape of the polishing cloth with respect to the polishing cloth in a state of being in contact with the surface of the polishing cloth. 19. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 18, wherein: 23. A measuring means for measuring a surface shape of the polishing cloth is provided integrally with a holder of the flattening means for performing a flattening process on the surface of the polishing cloth, and the measuring means is brought into contact with the surface of the polishing cloth. 19. The method for manufacturing a semiconductor device according to claim 18, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured by moving the polishing cloth in a state where the polishing pad is moved. 24. The method according to claim 18, wherein the surface shape of the polishing cloth is measured by irradiating the surface of the polishing cloth with light. 25. The method according to claim 18, wherein the polishing method is a chemical mechanical polishing method.