US20090061743A1 - Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate - Google Patents

Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate Download PDF

Info

Publication number
US20090061743A1
US20090061743A1 US12/195,922 US19592208A US2009061743A1 US 20090061743 A1 US20090061743 A1 US 20090061743A1 US 19592208 A US19592208 A US 19592208A US 2009061743 A1 US2009061743 A1 US 2009061743A1
Authority
US
United States
Prior art keywords
polishing pad
soft polishing
substrate
conditioning
rotating
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
US12/195,922
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
Stephen Jew
Jimin Zhang
Kuo-Lih Chang
Shih-Haur Shen
Wen-Chiang Tu
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Applied Materials Inc
Original Assignee
Individual
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Priority to US12/195,922 priority Critical patent/US20090061743A1/en
Assigned to APPLIED MATERIALS, INC. reassignment APPLIED MATERIALS, INC. ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: CHANG, KUO-LIH, SHEN, SHIH-HAUR, TU, WEN-CHIANG, JEW, STEPHEN, ZHANG, JIMIN
Priority to JP2008217067A priority patent/JP2009113196A/ja
Priority to TW097132993A priority patent/TW200919572A/zh
Publication of US20090061743A1 publication Critical patent/US20090061743A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

Links

Images

Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B24—GRINDING; POLISHING
    • B24B—MACHINES, DEVICES, OR PROCESSES FOR GRINDING OR POLISHING; DRESSING OR CONDITIONING OF ABRADING SURFACES; FEEDING OF GRINDING, POLISHING, OR LAPPING AGENTS
    • B24B37/00—Lapping machines or devices; Accessories
    • B24B37/04—Lapping machines or devices; Accessories designed for working plane surfaces
    • B24B37/042—Lapping machines or devices; Accessories designed for working plane surfaces operating processes therefor
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B24—GRINDING; POLISHING
    • B24B—MACHINES, DEVICES, OR PROCESSES FOR GRINDING OR POLISHING; DRESSING OR CONDITIONING OF ABRADING SURFACES; FEEDING OF GRINDING, POLISHING, OR LAPPING AGENTS
    • B24B53/00—Devices or means for dressing or conditioning abrasive surfaces
    • B24B53/003—Devices or means for dressing or conditioning abrasive surfaces using at least two conditioning tools
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B24—GRINDING; POLISHING
    • B24B—MACHINES, DEVICES, OR PROCESSES FOR GRINDING OR POLISHING; DRESSING OR CONDITIONING OF ABRADING SURFACES; FEEDING OF GRINDING, POLISHING, OR LAPPING AGENTS
    • B24B53/00—Devices or means for dressing or conditioning abrasive surfaces
    • B24B53/017—Devices or means for dressing, cleaning or otherwise conditioning lapping tools

Definitions

  • Embodiments of the present invention generally relate to polishing a substrate, such as a semiconductor wafer, with a soft polishing pad.
  • Planarization and polishing are procedures where previously deposited material is removed from the feature side of the substrate to form a generally even, planar or level surface.
  • the procedures are useful in removing undesired surface topography and surface defects, such as rough surfaces, agglomerated materials, crystal lattice damage, and scratches.
  • the procedures are also useful in forming features on a substrate by removing excess deposited material used to fill the features and to provide an even or level surface for subsequent deposition and processing.
  • Chemical mechanical polishing is one process commonly used in the manufacture of high-density integrated circuits to planarize or polish a layer of material deposited on a semiconductor wafer by moving the feature side of the substrate in contact with a soft polishing pad while in the presence of a polishing fluid. Material is removed from the feature side of the substrate that is in contact with the polishing surface through a combination of chemical and mechanical activity.
  • Soft polishing pads are commonly used as the final removal step in the copper CMP damascene process.
  • the useful lifetime of soft pads is typically low, and the initial performance for film removal rate of a new pad is low and requires a pre-conditioning process in order to ramp up and stabilize the removal rate.
  • This pre-conditioning process is time-consuming, which affects the throughput of the process. Further, the conventional pre-conditioning process may decrease the usable lifetime of the polishing pad.
  • Embodiments described herein generally provide a method and apparatus for pre-conditioning a new soft polishing pad. In some embodiments, a method and apparatus for processing a substrate on a soft polishing pad is described.
  • a method for polishing a substrate includes conditioning a processing surface of a soft polishing pad by rotating the soft polishing pad a first direction while contacting the soft polishing pad with a rotating diamond conditioning disk rotating a second direction, applying a pressure of about 1 pound-force to about 4 pound-force to the rotating diamond conditioning disk, and removing the diamond conditioning disk from contact with the rotating processing surface of the soft polishing pad.
  • the method also includes contacting a first substrate with the rotating processing surface of the soft polishing pad to perform a polishing process on the first substrate, removing the first substrate from the rotating processing surface of the soft polishing pad, conditioning the rotating processing surface of the soft polishing pad with a brush-type conditioning element rotating in the second direction, and contacting a second substrate with the rotating processing surface of the soft polishing pad to perform a polishing process on the second substrate.
  • a method for conditioning a soft polishing pad prior to polishing a substrate includes coupling a soft polishing pad to a platen, the soft polishing pad having a contact angle of less than about 80°, rotating the platen in a first direction at a first speed, providing a pressure applied to a conditioning disk toward the soft polishing pad while simultaneously rotating the conditioning disk a second direction at a second speed, and applying a fluid to the soft polishing pad.
  • a method for processing a substrate using a soft polishing pad includes coupling a new, unused soft polishing pad to a platen, providing rotational movement to the platen, placing a rotating conditioning disk in contact with the polishing material at a downforce of about 1 pound-force to about 4 pound-force, removing the rotating conditioning disk from contact with the soft polishing pad, and then contacting a substrate with the soft polishing pad to perform a polishing process on the substrate.
  • FIG. 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of a processing system.
  • FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of one embodiment of a processing station.
  • FIG. 3 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a break-in method.
  • FIG. 4 is a graph showing a comparison of two new soft pads.
  • FIG. 5 is a graph showing defect levels using methods described herein.
  • FIG. 6 shows the effect of a high pressure rinse from a spray bar on defect levels.
  • FIG. 7 is a graph showing removal rate degradation at or near the pad lifetime.
  • FIG. 1 is a plan view of a processing system 100 having a processing module 105 that is suitable for electrochemical mechanical polishing and chemical mechanical polishing.
  • the processing module 105 includes a first processing station 102 , a second processing station 103 , and a third processing station 106 disposed in an environmentally controlled enclosure 188 . Any of the processing stations 102 , 103 , 106 may perform a planarizing or polishing process to remove material from a feature side of a substrate to form a planar surface on the feature side.
  • the processing module 105 may be part of a processing system, such as, for example REFLEXION®, REFLEXION® LK, REFLEXION® LK ECMPTM, MIRRA MESA® polishing systems available from Applied Materials, Inc., located in Santa Clara, Calif., although other polishing systems may be utilized.
  • Other polishing modules including those that use other types of processing pads, belts, planarizing webs, or a combination thereof, and those that move a substrate relative to a polishing surface in a rotational, linear or other planar motion may also be adapted to benefit from embodiments described herein.
  • the first processing station 102 may be configured to perform an electrochemical mechanical planarization (ECMP) process
  • the second processing station 103 may perform a second ECMP process
  • the third processing station 106 may perform a conventional chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process.
  • ECMP electrochemical mechanical planarization
  • the invention is not limited to this configuration and that any or all of the stations 102 , 103 , and 106 may be adapted to use a CMP process to remove various layers deposited on the substrate.
  • the processing module 105 may include two stations that are adapted to perform a CMP process while another station may perform an ECMP process.
  • a substrate having feature definitions formed therein and filled with a barrier layer and then a conductive material disposed over the barrier layer may have the conductive material removed.
  • the removal can be in two steps in the first and second processing stations 102 , 103 , by an ECMP process, with the barrier layer processed in the third station 106 by a conventional CMP process to form a planarized surface on the substrate.
  • the embodiment described in system 100 includes a base 108 that supports the processing stations 102 , 103 and 106 , a transfer station 110 , and a carousel 112 .
  • a plurality of conditioning devices 182 are shown coupled to the base 108 and are movable in the direction indicated by arrow 109 in order to selectively place the conditioning device 182 over each of the processing stations 102 , 103 , and 106 .
  • the transfer station 110 generally facilitates transfer of substrates 114 to and from the system 100 via a loading robot 116 .
  • the loading robot 116 typically transfers substrates 114 between the transfer station 110 and an interface 120 that may include a cleaning module 122 , a metrology device 104 and one or more substrate storage cassettes 118 .
  • the transfer station 110 comprises an input buffer station 124 , an output buffer station 126 , a transfer robot 132 , and a load cup assembly 128 .
  • the loading robot 116 places the substrate 114 onto the input buffer station 124 .
  • the transfer robot 132 has two gripper assemblies, each having pneumatic gripper fingers that hold the substrate 114 by the substrate's edge. The transfer robot 132 lifts the substrate 114 from the input buffer station 124 and rotates the gripper and substrate 114 to position the substrate 114 over the load cup assembly 128 , and then places the substrate 114 down onto the load cup assembly 128 .
  • the carousel 112 supports a plurality of carrier heads 190 , each of which retains one substrate 114 during processing.
  • the carousel 112 moves the carrier heads 190 between the transfer station 110 and processing stations 102 , 103 and 106 .
  • the carousel 112 is centrally disposed on the base 108 and includes a plurality of arms 138 . Each arm 138 supports one of the carrier heads 190 . Two of the arms 138 depicted in FIG. 1 are shown in phantom so that the transfer station 110 and a processing surface 125 of the processing station 106 may be seen.
  • the carousel 112 is indexable such that the carrier head 190 may be moved between processing stations 102 , 103 , 106 and the transfer station 110 in a sequence defined by the user.
  • the carrier head 190 retains the substrate 114 while the substrate 114 is disposed in the processing stations 102 , 103 , 106 , which allows the substrate 114 to be sequentially processed by moving the substrate between stations while being retained in the same carrier head 190 .
  • a controller 140 comprising a central processing unit (CPU) 142 , memory 144 and support circuits 146 is connected to the polishing system 100 .
  • the CPU 142 may be one of any form of computer processor that can be used in an industrial setting for controlling pressures and various drives disposed on the system 100 .
  • the memory 144 is connected to the CPU 142 .
  • the memory 144 or computer-readable medium, may be one or more of readily available memory such as random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), floppy disk, hard disk, or any other form of digital storage, local or remote.
  • the support circuits 146 are connected to the CPU 142 for supporting the processor in a conventional manner. These circuits include cache, power supplies, clock circuits, input/output circuitry, subsystems, and the like.
  • Power to operate the processing system 100 and/or the controller 140 is provided by a power supply 150 .
  • the power supply 150 is shown connected to multiple components of the polishing system 100 , including the transfer station 110 , the interface 120 , the loading robot 116 and the controller 140 .
  • FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view of one embodiment of a processing station 106 that is configured to perform a conventional CMP process.
  • a conditioning device 182 and a spray bar 255 are shown positioned over the processing surface 125 of a soft polishing pad 226 .
  • the spray bar 255 includes a plurality of nozzles 258 adapted to provide fluids to at least a portion of the radius of the soft polishing pad 226 .
  • a description of a spray bar 255 may be found in U.S. Patent publication No. 2003/0027505, which published Feb. 6, 2003, U.S. Pat. No. 6,939,210, which issued Sep. 6, 2005, and U.S. Pat. No. 7,086,933, which issued August 8 , 2006 , all of which are incorporated by reference herein.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 is new or unused, i.e. no substrates have been polished or contacted the processing surface 125 of the soft polishing pad 226 .
  • the soft polishing pad 226 includes at least an upper surface comprised of a polishing material 228 having a plurality of microscopic pore structures and is coupled to a platen 230 that is rotationally mounted on the base 108 .
  • the soft polishing pad 226 may be comprised of other layers, such as sub pads, compliant layers, stiffening layers, and adhesives, between the polishing material 228 and the platen 230 .
  • the soft polishing pad 226 may be removably disposed on an upper surface of the platen 230 by binders, such as pressure sensitive adhesives or fasteners, which are configured to facilitate static placement and replacement of the soft polishing pad 226 .
  • the spray bar 255 is rotatably coupled to the base 108 about a centerline A and provides a fluid 260 that is directed toward the processing surface 125 .
  • the fluid 260 may be a chemical solution, a cleaning solution, or a combination thereof.
  • the fluid 260 may be an abrasive containing or abrasive free polishing compound adapted to aid in removal of material from the feature side of the substrate. Reductants and oxidizing agents such as hydrogen peroxide may also be added to the fluid 260 .
  • the fluid 260 may be a rinsing agent, such as deionized water (DIW), that is used as a rinse or flush to remove polishing byproducts from the polishing material 228 .
  • DIW deionized water
  • the fluid 260 may be used to facilitate conditioning of the polishing surface 125 to open the microscopic pore structures of the processing surface 125 .
  • the conditioning device 182 generally includes a conditioner carrier 212 coupled to the head assembly 202 , which is coupled to a support member 204 by an arm 206 .
  • the support member 204 is disposed through the base 108 of the processing station 106 . Bearings are provided between the base 108 and the support member 204 to facilitate rotation of the support member 204 about a centerline B relative to the base 108 .
  • An actuator (not shown) may be coupled between the base 108 and the support member 204 to control the rotational orientation of the support member 204 about the centerline B and laterally position the head assembly 202 relative to the processing station 106 .
  • the support member 204 may house drive components to selectively rotate the conditioning element 208 relative to the processing pad 226 about a centerline C.
  • the support member 204 may also provide fluid conduits to control the vertical position of one of the conditioner carrier 212 or the head assembly 202 .
  • a conditioning element 208 is coupled to the bottom surface of the conditioner carrier 212 .
  • the conditioner carrier 212 is coupled to the head assembly 202 and may be selectively pressed against the platen 230 while rotating about centerline C to condition the polishing material 228 .
  • the platen 230 with the soft polishing pad 226 thereon rotates relative to the base 108 about a centerline D.
  • the conditioning element 208 may be an abrasive disc, such as a diamond or ceramic material, both being configured to abrade and enhance the polishing material 228 .
  • the conditioning element 208 may be a brush-type conditioning disk, such as a disk having nylon bristles.
  • the conditioning element 208 is adapted to be easily replaced to provide a new or different disk as desired by the user.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 is a soft, compliant pad material, such as polymer based pad materials typically utilized in CMP.
  • the polymer material may be a polyurethane, a polycarbonate, fluoropolymers, PTFE, PTFA, polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), or combinations thereof.
  • the pad material may further comprise open or closed cell foamed polymers, elastomers, felt, impregnated felt, plastics, and like materials compatible with the processing chemistries.
  • the pad material is a felt material impregnated with a porous coating.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 in a new or unused condition includes a thickness between about 0.38 mm to about 1.15 mm, for example about 0.77 mm and a density between about 0.25 g/cm 3 to about 0.8 g/cm 3 , for example about 0.52 g/cm 3 .
  • the soft polishing pad 226 in a new or unused condition also includes a compressibility between about 7% to about 21%, for example about 14% and an elasticity between about 75% to about 100%, for example about 92%.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 in a new or unused condition also includes a tensile modulus at 100% elongation (100% modulus) between about 4 megapascals (MPa) and about 12 MPa, for example about 8.3 MPa and may exhibit a hardness between about 40 Shore A and about 80 Shore A. In one example, the hardness is between about 68 Shore A and 74 Shore A, such as about 70 Shore A. In another example, the hardness of the soft polishing pad 226 is about 63 Shore A.
  • the upper surface of the soft polishing pad 226 includes a plurality of microscopic pore structures that, when in a new or unused condition, are not fully and/or evenly open.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 in a new or unused condition includes an average pore size between about 20 microns ( ⁇ m) to about 60 ⁇ m, for example, about 40 ⁇ m and a pore rate or porosity between about 10% to about 40%, for example about 20%.
  • the upper surface of the soft polishing pad 226 in a new or unused condition also includes a nap thickness of between about 0.2 mm and about 1 mm, for example about 0.58 mm.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 includes an enhanced hydrophilicity.
  • the upper surface of the soft polishing pad 226 in a new or unused condition includes an enhanced wetability, having a contact angle less than about 80°, such as between about 35° and about 46°, for example about 38.2°.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 comprise a processing surface 125 which includes microscopic pore structures as described above.
  • the pore structures effect material removal from the feature side of the substrate. Attributes such as polishing compound retention, polishing or removal activity, and material and fluid transportation affect the removal rate. In order to facilitate optimal removal of material from the substrate, these microscopic pores must be fully and evenly open to provide a relatively high and stable removal rate. These pore structures, when open, facilitate removal by enhancing pad surface wetability, maintaining pad surface roughness, and dispersing polishing compounds, such as, for example, abrasive particles supplied from the polishing compound.
  • the processing surface When a new soft polishing pad is installed on the platen, the processing surface is clean, but the pores may not be fully open.
  • the processing surface may be embossed and/or comprise a thin layer or film that may partially or fully cover the pores.
  • the embossment or film may cause portions of the processing surface to lay over and cover the pores and, until removed, block at least a portion of the pores, resulting in non-uniform surface roughness and/or low pad surface wetability.
  • a pre-conditioning process and/or a polishing process may commence using the new pad.
  • the new soft polishing pad may be pre-conditioned with a brush-type conditioning device, which may not provide enough roughness to substantially open the pores and optimize the processing surface.
  • the new soft polishing pad may be put into service by performing a polishing process on actual or dummy substrates without pre-conditioning, and the pad may be conditioned concurrently with the polishing process.
  • the pores disposed in the processing surface of the pad will eventually open and the processing surface will optimize over time and a number of substrates, as determined by a stabilized average removal rate.
  • a method is described herein where a pad conditioning method is implemented prior to processing substrates using a rough conditioning element.
  • the method facilitates increased average removal rate and promotes stabilization of the average removal rate after a lesser number of substrates processed.
  • the method also increases throughput by the enhanced average removal rate stabilization.
  • FIG. 3 is a flowchart depicting one embodiment of a break-in method 300 .
  • step 310 comprises providing a new or unused soft polishing pad to a platen.
  • a soft polishing pad such as soft polishing pad 226
  • the soft polishing pad 226 may be any polymer pad as described herein.
  • the soft polishing pad 226 coupled to the platen 230 and rotated in a first direction at a first speed.
  • a conditioning element is rotated in a second direction at a second speed relative to the rotation of the platen 230 .
  • the second direction may be the same or different than the first direction such that the pad 226 and conditioning element 208 are rotating in opposing directions.
  • the second speed may be the same as the first speed, or the first and second speeds may be different.
  • the conditioning element 208 is controllably urged toward the rotating platen 230 and pad 226 .
  • the conditioning element 208 includes a rough contact surface, such as a contact surface comprising a diamond material.
  • the conditioning element 208 may be a disk or element as is typically used to condition hard polyurethane polishing pads. Use of a rough conditioning element to condition a soft polishing pad may not be performed due to concerns regarding destruction of the pad surface by the rough conditioning element.
  • a brush such as a nylon brush with soft bristles can be used on a soft polishing pad for a determined amount of time.
  • any rough conditioning element may be used, such as conditioning elements having embedded diamonds or ceramic particles, or diamond particles, polycrystalline diamonds, diamond matrices, or combinations thereof.
  • a suitable diamond disk is described in U.S.
  • the platen 230 may be rotated in the first direction at a first speed, such as between about 40 RPM to about 130 RPM, for example about 50 RPM to about 75 RPM.
  • the conditioning element may be rotated in the second direction at a second speed, such as about 60 RPM to about 120 RPM, for example about 90 RPM to about 110 RPM.
  • the second direction may be the same direction as the first direction of the platen, or the second direction may be a rotational direction opposite the rotational direction of the platen.
  • Step 340 includes applying pressure or down force to the conditioning element.
  • a downward pressure in a range between about 0.1 lbf (pound-force) to about 10 lbf, for example about 0.5 lbf to about 8 lbf, such as between about 1.0 lbf to about 3 lbf may be applied to the head assembly 202 ( FIG. 2 ) having the conditioning element coupled thereto.
  • An optional step 350 provides applying a rinse from the spray bar 255 to the soft polishing pad, which may be a cleaning fluid, such as deionized water and/or a diluted chemical solution comprising complexing agents configured to avoid metal accumulation and contamination on the pad.
  • the rinse may be applied at a pressure between about 25 psi to about 90 psi, for example about 40 psi to about 60 psi.
  • the pore structures may be optimized and a polishing process may commence at step 360 by providing a substrate and contacting the polishing surface with the substrate.
  • the conditioning element 208 such as a diamond disk, may be used during steps 310 - 340 , and optionally, step 350 .
  • the conditioning element 208 may be replaced with a brush-type conditioning element at 360 .
  • a suitable brush-type conditioning element is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/734,063, filed Apr. 11, 2007, which is incorporated herein by reference.
  • a first conditioning process as described above at steps 310 - 340 , and optionally, step 350 , to perform a break-in or pre-conditioning process is performed on the processing surface 125 of the soft polishing pad.
  • a substrate is coupled to a carrier head 190 ( FIG. 1 ) adapted to controllably urge the feature side of the substrate (not shown) against the processing surface 125 .
  • the substrate, retained in the carrier head 190 ( FIG. 1 ) is typically rotated relative to the rotating platen 230 and a down force, such as between about 0.6 psi and about 1.0 psi for a low-down force polishing process, is applied to the substrate.
  • a second conditioning process to maintain or refresh the processing surface 125 of the pad 226 may additionally be performed simultaneously, or at user defined intervals, at or during the process at step 360 .
  • the second conditioning process includes rotating and controllably urging the conditioning element 208 relative to the soft polishing pad 226 to condition and clean the processing surface 125 of the soft polishing pad 226 .
  • the second conditioning process may be used ex-situ, which is conditioning when a substrate polishing process is not occurring, such as before or after a substrate is being polished.
  • the second conditioning process cleans and frees the pore structures of polishing byproducts, such as previously removed material, spent portions of the polishing compound, and weakened portions of the processing surface 125 that may have clogged a portion of the pores.
  • the second conditioning process helps to optimize the pore structures and also maintain the pore structures to facilitate removal and is continued or repeated as needed to maintain an optimal processing surface 125 and thus a more stable removal rate.
  • a high pressure rinse as described above at 350 may be performed before, during, or after the second conditioning process.
  • Diamond conditioning elements to perform the pre-conditioning process are not used on soft pads due to fear of destruction of the pad surface by the rough disk surface.
  • the processing surface 125 of the new polishing pad 226 may be modified by the first conditioning method described above to a roughness that may be equal to a processing surface obtained by extensive conditioning using a brush-type conditioning element and/or with the use of dummy wafers. While not necessary, use of dummy wafers to achieve a targeted removal rate may be used with the first conditioning process. However, the number of dummy wafers and slurry consumption may be reduced, which lessens cost of ownership, time, and other factors.
  • FIG. 4 is a graph 400 showing a comparison of a pre-conditioning process of two new soft pads.
  • Curve 410 represents a conventional brush-type conditioning regime on a soft polishing pad and curve 420 represents a pre-conditioning process using a diamond conditioner.
  • Nodes 430 and 440 represent an initial qualification of each pad.
  • the parenthetical noted as 430 indicates the minimalization of dummy wafers and time to reach the initial qualification.
  • FIG. 5 is a graph 500 showing a diamond disk pre-condition as described above as the first conditioning process followed by a second conditioning process with ex-situ brush conditioning.
  • Points 510 represent substrate defects greater than 0.18 ⁇ m and points 520 represent substrate defects greater than 0.24 ⁇ m.
  • the graph 500 demonstrates low defect counts during the initial pad lifetime with the pre-condition process using a diamond conditioning element and ex-situ brush conditioning during a polishing process.
  • FIG. 6 is a graph 600 showing the effect of a high pressure rinse from a spray bar on defect counts. Increasing the high pressure rinse to clean the pad surface following substrate processing and during ex-situ brush conditioning is shown to lower the overall defect level.
  • a defect count at bar “A” was realized at a flow rate of about 3.7 ⁇ lpm, and a lower defect count at bar “B” was realized at a flow rate of about 5 lpm.
  • a lower defect rate was realized with a flow rate of about 9 lpm, as shown in bar “C”.
  • FIG. 7 is a graph 700 showing a decline in removal rate over time using a soft polishing pad that has been pre-conditioned and remedially conditioned using ex-situ brush conditioning according to the methods described above.
  • Symbol “A” represents dielectric removal
  • symbol “B” represents oxide removal
  • symbol “C” represents copper removal.
  • the removal rate After approximately 300 wafers, the removal rate begins to drop. The removal rate may drop below specification levels at approximately 500 wafers and need to be replaced, which may be similar to other soft pad lifetimes.
  • the use of diamond disk pre-conditioning according to the method described above realizes a quicker initial removal rate, which saves time and minimizes cost of ownership.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Mechanical Treatment Of Semiconductor (AREA)
  • Grinding-Machine Dressing And Accessory Apparatuses (AREA)
  • Finish Polishing, Edge Sharpening, And Grinding By Specific Grinding Devices (AREA)
US12/195,922 2007-08-29 2008-08-21 Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate Abandoned US20090061743A1 (en)

Priority Applications (3)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US12/195,922 US20090061743A1 (en) 2007-08-29 2008-08-21 Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate
JP2008217067A JP2009113196A (ja) 2007-08-29 2008-08-26 除去レートランプアップによる影響を減少し且つ欠陥レートを安定化するための柔軟パッド調整方法
TW097132993A TW200919572A (en) 2007-08-29 2008-08-28 Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US96883007P 2007-08-29 2007-08-29
US12/195,922 US20090061743A1 (en) 2007-08-29 2008-08-21 Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
US20090061743A1 true US20090061743A1 (en) 2009-03-05

Family

ID=40408212

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US12/195,922 Abandoned US20090061743A1 (en) 2007-08-29 2008-08-21 Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate

Country Status (3)

Country Link
US (1) US20090061743A1 (zh)
JP (1) JP2009113196A (zh)
TW (1) TW200919572A (zh)

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20120322348A1 (en) * 2009-12-22 2012-12-20 Jsr Corporation Pad for chemical mechanical polishing and method of chemical mechanical polishing using same
US20130344779A1 (en) * 2011-03-07 2013-12-26 Ehwa Diamond Industrial. Co., Ltd. Conditioner for soft pad and method for manufacturing same
US20140370788A1 (en) * 2013-06-13 2014-12-18 Cabot Microelectronics Corporation Low surface roughness polishing pad
US20160207161A1 (en) * 2013-08-28 2016-07-21 Sumco Corporation Method of polishing wafer and wafer polishing apparatus
CN108349061A (zh) * 2015-10-29 2018-07-31 古河电气工业株式会社 研磨垫、使用研磨垫的研磨方法以及该研磨垫的使用方法

Citations (11)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4927432A (en) * 1986-03-25 1990-05-22 Rodel, Inc. Pad material for grinding, lapping and polishing
US6022266A (en) * 1998-10-09 2000-02-08 International Business Machines Corporation In-situ pad conditioning process for CMP
US6273797B1 (en) * 1999-11-19 2001-08-14 International Business Machines Corporation In-situ automated CMP wedge conditioner
US20010029155A1 (en) * 2000-01-31 2001-10-11 Applied Materials, Inc. Multi-step conditioning process
US6354915B1 (en) * 1999-01-21 2002-03-12 Rodel Holdings Inc. Polishing pads and methods relating thereto
US6379230B1 (en) * 1997-04-28 2002-04-30 Nec Corporation Automatic polishing apparatus capable of polishing a substrate with a high planarization
US20020100743A1 (en) * 2000-12-05 2002-08-01 Bonner Benjamin A. Multi-step polish process to control uniformity when using a selective slurry on patterned wafers
US20040192178A1 (en) * 2003-03-28 2004-09-30 Barak Yardeni Diamond conditioning of soft chemical mechanical planarization/polishing (CMP) polishing pads
US6800020B1 (en) * 2000-10-02 2004-10-05 Lam Research Corporation Web-style pad conditioning system and methods for implementing the same
US6949012B2 (en) * 2002-12-10 2005-09-27 Intel Corporation Polishing pad conditioning method and apparatus
US7220475B2 (en) * 2003-06-03 2007-05-22 Fuji Spinning Co., Ltd. Polishing sheet and polishing work method

Family Cites Families (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US6910951B2 (en) * 2003-02-24 2005-06-28 Dow Global Technologies, Inc. Materials and methods for chemical-mechanical planarization
JP2005271101A (ja) * 2004-03-23 2005-10-06 Tokyo Seimitsu Co Ltd 研磨パッドのドレッシング装置及び該研磨パッドのドレッシング装置を有する研磨装置
JP4882292B2 (ja) * 2004-07-05 2012-02-22 東レ株式会社 研磨布の製造方法
JP4621014B2 (ja) * 2004-12-10 2011-01-26 東洋ゴム工業株式会社 研磨パッドおよび半導体デバイスの製造方法
JP4656650B2 (ja) * 2005-11-28 2011-03-23 花王株式会社 基板の研磨方法
JP2007167962A (ja) * 2005-12-19 2007-07-05 Ebara Corp ドレッサー、研磨装置及びドレッシング方法
JP2007184530A (ja) * 2005-12-08 2007-07-19 Ebara Corp 研磨パッドのコンディショニング方法、電解研磨装置及び電解研磨方法

Patent Citations (14)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4927432A (en) * 1986-03-25 1990-05-22 Rodel, Inc. Pad material for grinding, lapping and polishing
US6379230B1 (en) * 1997-04-28 2002-04-30 Nec Corporation Automatic polishing apparatus capable of polishing a substrate with a high planarization
US6022266A (en) * 1998-10-09 2000-02-08 International Business Machines Corporation In-situ pad conditioning process for CMP
US6500053B2 (en) * 1999-01-21 2002-12-31 Rodel Holdings, Inc. Polishing pads and methods relating thereto
US6354915B1 (en) * 1999-01-21 2002-03-12 Rodel Holdings Inc. Polishing pads and methods relating thereto
US6273797B1 (en) * 1999-11-19 2001-08-14 International Business Machines Corporation In-situ automated CMP wedge conditioner
US20010029155A1 (en) * 2000-01-31 2001-10-11 Applied Materials, Inc. Multi-step conditioning process
US6800020B1 (en) * 2000-10-02 2004-10-05 Lam Research Corporation Web-style pad conditioning system and methods for implementing the same
US20020100743A1 (en) * 2000-12-05 2002-08-01 Bonner Benjamin A. Multi-step polish process to control uniformity when using a selective slurry on patterned wafers
US6949012B2 (en) * 2002-12-10 2005-09-27 Intel Corporation Polishing pad conditioning method and apparatus
US20040192178A1 (en) * 2003-03-28 2004-09-30 Barak Yardeni Diamond conditioning of soft chemical mechanical planarization/polishing (CMP) polishing pads
US20060183410A1 (en) * 2003-03-28 2006-08-17 Barak Yardeni Diamond conditioning of soft chemical mechanical planarization/polishing (CMP) polishing pads
US7220475B2 (en) * 2003-06-03 2007-05-22 Fuji Spinning Co., Ltd. Polishing sheet and polishing work method
US20070184757A1 (en) * 2003-06-03 2007-08-09 Fuji Spinning Co., Ltd. Polishing sheet and polishing work method

Cited By (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20120322348A1 (en) * 2009-12-22 2012-12-20 Jsr Corporation Pad for chemical mechanical polishing and method of chemical mechanical polishing using same
US20130344779A1 (en) * 2011-03-07 2013-12-26 Ehwa Diamond Industrial. Co., Ltd. Conditioner for soft pad and method for manufacturing same
US20140370788A1 (en) * 2013-06-13 2014-12-18 Cabot Microelectronics Corporation Low surface roughness polishing pad
CN105163907A (zh) * 2013-06-13 2015-12-16 嘉柏微电子材料股份公司 低表面粗糙度的抛光垫
US20160207161A1 (en) * 2013-08-28 2016-07-21 Sumco Corporation Method of polishing wafer and wafer polishing apparatus
US9919402B2 (en) * 2013-08-28 2018-03-20 Sumco Corporation Method of polishing wafer and wafer polishing apparatus
CN108349061A (zh) * 2015-10-29 2018-07-31 古河电气工业株式会社 研磨垫、使用研磨垫的研磨方法以及该研磨垫的使用方法

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
TW200919572A (en) 2009-05-01
JP2009113196A (ja) 2009-05-28

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US6193587B1 (en) Apparatus and method for cleansing a polishing pad
US6203413B1 (en) Apparatus and methods for conditioning polishing pads in mechanical and/or chemical-mechanical planarization of microelectronic-device substrate assemblies
US20070151867A1 (en) Apparatus and a method for electrochemical mechanical processing with fluid flow assist elements
US20070135024A1 (en) Polishing pad and polishing apparatus
US20060070872A1 (en) Pad design for electrochemical mechanical polishing
US6386963B1 (en) Conditioning disk for conditioning a polishing pad
US20020119733A1 (en) See attached list (k. yasui et al)
JP6375166B2 (ja) Ｃｍｐ後洗浄用の両面バフモジュール
US10256120B2 (en) Systems, methods and apparatus for post-chemical mechanical planarization substrate buff pre-cleaning
JP5552124B2 (ja) パッドコンディショナの自動ディスク交換
US6341997B1 (en) Method for recycling a polishing pad conditioning disk
US20130196572A1 (en) Conditioning a pad in a cleaning module
US20090061743A1 (en) Method of soft pad preparation to reduce removal rate ramp-up effect and to stabilize defect rate
US6394886B1 (en) Conformal disk holder for CMP pad conditioner
US6769968B2 (en) Interchangeable conditioning disk apparatus
US9254547B2 (en) Side pad design for edge pedestal
US6572453B1 (en) Multi-fluid polishing process
US8012000B2 (en) Extended pad life for ECMP and barrier removal
US20080277787A1 (en) Method and pad design for the removal of barrier material by electrochemical mechanical processing
CN111113269A (zh) 调节装置及调节用于化学机械研磨的研磨垫的方法
JP5675626B2 (ja) 研磨パッド端部の延伸
WO2004059714A1 (ja) 研磨装置及び半導体デバイスの製造方法
US8211325B2 (en) Process sequence to achieve global planarity using a combination of fixed abrasive and high selectivity slurry for pre-metal dielectric CMP applications
US20140251952A1 (en) Surface modified polishing pad
US20080020682A1 (en) Method for conditioning a polishing pad

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
AS Assignment

Owner name: APPLIED MATERIALS, INC., CALIFORNIA

Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:JEW, STEPHEN;ZHANG, JIMIN;CHANG, KUO-LIH;AND OTHERS;REEL/FRAME:021425/0001;SIGNING DATES FROM 20080814 TO 20080818

STCB Information on status: application discontinuation

Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION