Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Ming-Shiuan She

Teng-Chun Tsai

Shen-Nan Lee

Yung-Cheng Lu

Kuo-Yin Lin

Ching-Hong Jiang

Te-Chien Hou

Chen-Hao Wu

Chun-Hung Liao

An-Hsuan Lee

A method disclosed herein includes forming a polishing pad configured for a chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP) process and polishing a workpiece using the polishing pad and a CMP slurry. Forming the polishing pad includes forming an interpenetrating polymer network having a first phase and a second phase embedded in the first phase, removing the second phase from the interpenetrating polymer network, thereby forming a porous top pad that includes a network of pores embedded in the first phase, and adhering the porous top pad to a sub pad, thereby forming the polishing pad. The second phase is different from the first phase in composition, and the interpenetrating polymer network has a substantially periodic pattern. Surface roughness of the porous top pad is consistent during the polishing of the workpiece.

Fabrication of a polishing pad for chemical mechanical polishing

An apparatus for performing chemical mechanical polish on a wafer includes a polishing head that includes a retaining ring. The polishing head is configured to hold the wafer in the retaining ring. The retaining ring includes a first ring having a first hardness, and a second ring encircled by the first ring, wherein the second ring has a second hardness smaller than the first hardness.

CMP polishing head design for improving removal rate uniformity

A method of forming a CMP pad includes providing a solution of a block copolymer (BCP), where the BCP includes a first segment and a second segment connected to the first segment, the second segment being different from the first segment in composition. The method further includes processing the BCP to form a polymer network having a first phase and a second phase embedded in the first phase, where the first phase includes the first segment and the second phase includes the second segment, and subsequently removing the second phase from the polymer network, thereby forming a polymer film that includes a network of pores embedded in the first phase. Thereafter, the method proceeds to combining the CMP top pad and a CMP sub-pad to form a CMP pad, where the CMP top pad is configured to engage with a workpiece during a CMP process.

Growing community of inventors

Hsin-Chu, Taiwan

Ming-Shiuan She