Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Akihiro Tanoue

Shin Hashimoto

Yoshiharu Hidaka

Koji Shimizu

Yutaka Matsuzawa

A slurry feeding apparatus includes closed slurry bottle, piping, wet nitrogen generator, wet nitrogen supply pipe, suction and spray nozzles, temperature regulator, flow rate control valves, slurry delivery pump and controller for controlling the operation and flow rate of the slurry delivery pump. While a wafer is being polished by a CMP polisher, the controller continuously operates the pump. On the other hand, while the polisher is idling, the controller starts and stops the pump intermittently at regular intervals. No stirrer like a propeller is inserted into the slurry bottle, but the slurry is stirred up by spraying the slurry through the spray nozzle.

Polishing method

Apparatus and method for feeding slurry

A method for rejuvenating a polishing slurry that has been used for a chemical-mechanical polishing process includes the steps of: recovering the polishing slurry; and re-dispersing abrasive grains contained in the polishing slurry recovered. Specifically, the abrasive grains may be re-dispersed by adding a dispersant or applying an electromagnetic field or ultrasonic radiation to the polishing slurry recovered.

Growing community of inventors

Toyama, Japan

Akihiro Tanoue