International Business Machines Corporation

Timothy J Rickard, Jr

Matthew T Tiersch

Paul H Smith, Jr

Richard John Lebel

Rock Nadeau

Douglas Keith Sturtevant

Charles A McKinney

Daniel D Desorcie

An apparatus for polishing a semiconductor wafer is provided which includes a wafer carrier having on its lower surface a non-uniform surface structure means to vary the force against a wafer during a polishing operation so that the polishing is enhanced and imparts a planar surface across the polished wafer. Preferred non-uniform surface structure means include use of a wafer carrier having on its lower surface a backing film having a first central portion having a predetermined compressibility and a second peripheral portion having a different compressibility than the first portion. Another non-uniform surface structure means to vary the force against the wafer comprises a wafer carrier having on its lower surface a raised circumferential region around the periphery of the carrier.

CMP wafer carrier for preferential polishing of a wafer

Growing community of inventors

Milton, VT, United States of America

Timothy J Rickard, Jr