Sumco Corporation

Yasuhiko Tsukanaka

Hiroto Fukushima

Tomonori Miura

Takeshi Ezaki

The present invention provides an apparatus capable of uniformly grinding an polishing pad. Further, the present invention provides a method of grinding an polishing pad by using the grinding apparatus. Specifically, the present invention provides a method of, in a double-side polishing device having a carrier for holding a work, a pair of upper and lower rotating surface plates disposed to face each other to sandwich the carrier therebetween, and the polishing pad provided on each of the facing surfaces of the rotating surface plates for polishing the work, grinding the polishing pad, the method comprising the steps of: separating the upper and the lower rotating surface plates away from each other when the polishing pads on the upper and the lower rotating surface plates are to be ground; inserting, between the separated upper and lower rotating surface plates, an arm having at a front end portion thereof a grinding plate of a diameter smaller than those of the rotating surface plates; and pressing the grinding plate against the polishing pad of each of the rotating surface plates and rotating the grinding plate, thereby grinding the polishing pad of each of the rotating surface plates. The present invention also provides an apparatus which enables the grinding method described above.

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Kashiwara, Japan

Yasuhiko Tsukanaka