U.S. patent application number 14/676892 was filed with the patent office on 2015-10-08 for chemical mechanical polishing conditioner.
The applicant listed for this patent is KINIK COMPANY. Invention is credited to CHIA-FENG CHIU, JUI-LIN CHOU, HSIN-YING LIN, CHIA-CHUN WANG.
Application Number | 20150283671 14/676892 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54208946 |
Filed Date | 2015-10-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20150283671 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
CHOU; JUI-LIN ; et
al. |
October 8, 2015 |
CHEMICAL MECHANICAL POLISHING CONDITIONER
Abstract
The present invention relates to a chemical mechanical polishing
conditioner, comprising: a substrate; a binding layer disposed on
the substrate; and multiple abrasive units placed on the binding
layer; wherein each abrasive unit has an abrasive unit substrate
and an abrasive layer which is a diamond film formed by chemical
vapor deposition and has multiple abrasive tips; wherein the
abrasive units have uniform heights, such that the abrasive units
form a planarized surface. Therefore, the present invention can
improve planarization of the conditioner, enhance efficiency, and
prolong lifetime.
Inventors: |
CHOU; JUI-LIN; (NEW TAIPEI
CITY, TW) ; WANG; CHIA-CHUN; (NEW TAIPEI CITY,
TW) ; CHIU; CHIA-FENG; (NEW TAIPEI CITY, TW) ;
LIN; HSIN-YING; (TAIPEI, TW) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
KINIK COMPANY |
TAPEI |
|
TW |
|
|
Family ID: |
54208946 |
Appl. No.: |
14/676892 |
Filed: |
April 2, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
451/443 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B24B 53/017
20130101 |
International
Class: |
B24B 53/017 20060101
B24B053/017 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 8, 2014 |
TW |
103112814 |
Claims
1. A chemical mechanical polishing conditioner comprising: a
substrate; a binding layer disposed on the substrate; and multiple
abrasive units placed on the binding layer, each abrasive unit
having an abrasive layer and an abrasive unit substrate, the
abrasive layer being a diamond film formed by a chemical vapor
deposition and having multiple abrasive tips; wherein heights of
the abrasive units are equal to form a planarized surface.
2. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein a height difference between any two of the
abrasive units is less than 20 micrometers.
3. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the abrasive tips are in the shape of knife edges,
cones, arcs, cylinders, pyramids, or prisms.
4. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein alignment directions of the abrasive tips are
uniform, partially uniform, or different.
5. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein tip angles of the abrasive tips are equal,
partially equal, or different.
6. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein horizontal distances between any two neighboring
abrasive tips are equal, partially equal, or different.
7. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein thicknesses of the abrasive units are equal,
partially equal, or different.
8. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein a middle layer is disposed between the abrasive
layer and the abrasive unit substrate.
9. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 8, wherein the middle layer is made of the group consisting
of aluminum oxide, silicon carbide, and aluminum nitride.
10. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the abrasive unit substrate is a conductive
substrate or an insulating substrate.
11. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the binding layer is made of a ceramic material, a
brazing material, a electroplating material, a metallic material,
or a polymeric material.
12. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 11, wherein the polymeric material is epoxy resin, polyester
resin, polyacrylate resin, or phenol resin.
13. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 11, wherein the brazing material is made of a group
consisting of iron, cobalt, nickel, chromium, manganese, silicon,
aluminum, and any combination thereof.
14. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the substrate is a stainless steel substrate, a
die steel substrate, a metal alloy substrate, a ceramic substrate,
a plastic substrate, or any combination thereof.
15. The chemical mechanical polishing conditioner as claimed in
claim 1, wherein the substrate is a flat substrate or a notch
substrate.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a chemical mechanical
polishing conditioner, especially to a combinational chemical
mechanical polishing conditioner having tips of leveling
heights.
[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art(s)
[0004] Chemical Mechanical Polishing (abbreviated as CMP) is
commonly used in various industries to polish the surfaces of
various articles made of ceramic, silicon, glass, quartz, or metal.
With the applicability of large-scaled planarization of integrated
semiconductor device, CMP becomes a common planarization technique
in the semiconductor process.
[0005] During the CMP process of the semiconductor, a pad is
contacted with a wafer or other semiconductor elements in
conjunction with suitable abrasive slurry to remove impurities or
protruding structures on the surface of the wafer through both
chemical reaction and mechanical force. When the pad has been used
for a period of time, polishing debris produced from the CMP
process will accumulate and stagnate on the surface of the pad,
thereby reducing the polishing effect and efficiency. Therefore, a
chemical mechanical polishing conditioner can be used to dress the
surface of the pad for the desired polishing effect and
efficiency.
[0006] In the preparation of a chemical mechanical polishing
conditioner (abbreviated as CMP conditioner), multiple abrasive
particles are mounted to a binding layer to form an abrasive layer.
The abrasive layer is fixed to a surface of a substrate by brazing
or sintering. Said CMP conditioner is suitable for dressing the
pads; however, in more sophisticated semiconductor process with
line-width below 45 nanometers, the rough surface of the pad that
is too coarse will cause problems such as scratch, local
over-polishing, depression, or non-uniform thickness of the wafer.
As the line-width of integrated semiconductor device is decreasing,
the demand for the planarization of the surface of the wafer is
increasing, and same for the CMP conditioner.
[0007] Taiwan Patent Application Publication No. 201341113
discloses a combinational chemical mechanical polishing conditioner
comprising a substrate; multiple abrasive units disposed on a
surface of the substrate and each abrasive unit comprising multiple
abrasive tips and a binder layer fixing the abrasive tips; a
thickness-adjustable adhesive layer to fix the abrasive units on
the surface of the substrate. A height difference between a first
highest point and a second highest point of a predetermined plane
is less than 10 micrometers. A height difference between the first
highest point and a tenth highest point of the predetermined plane
is less than 20 micrometers. A height difference between the first
highest point and a hundredth highest point of the predetermined
plane is less than 40 micrometers. The first highest point of the
predetermined plane protrudes more than 50 micrometers away from
the binder layer. This prior invention also relates to the method
for preparing the combined chemical mechanical polishing
conditioner and the applications of the combinational chemical
mechanical polishing conditioner.
[0008] Taiwan Patent Application Publication No. 201249595
discloses a pad conditioner for CMP comprising a substrate having a
first set of protrusions and a second set of protrusions. The first
set of the protrusions has a first average height and the second
set of the protrusions has a second average height. The first
average height and the second average height are different. Tops of
the protrusions of the first set of the protrusions have protruding
surfaces. Tops of the protrusions of the second set of the
protrusions have non-flat surfaces. A layer of polycrystalline
diamond is disposed on each non-flat surface of the first set of
the protrusions and the second set of the protrusions. The
protrusions can be discriminated by their heights, predetermined
positions, or dimensions of substrates. This prior invention
provides various ways to measure the protrusions including an
average height measured from a back side of the pad conditioner for
CMP, a peak-to-valley height, or a protruding height. However, the
protrusions and the substrate are integrated and cannot form a
totally planarized surface to improve the abrasive efficiency and
prolong lifetime of the CMP conditioner.
[0009] Taiwan Patent Application Publication No. 201341113
discloses a pad conditioner with a uniform height design. However,
said invention is different from the present invention to be
mentioned afterward in the structure of CMP conditioner.
[0010] To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides
a CMP conditioner to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned
problems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The major objective of the present invention is to provide a
CMP conditioner by combining abrasive units in smaller dimensions
with a substrate in larger dimensions to provide a planarized
surface. The planarized surface can improve the polishing effect of
the CMP conditioner.
[0012] To achieve the abovementioned objective, the present
invention provides a CMP conditioner. The CMP conditioner comprises
a substrate, a binding layer disposed on the substrate, and
multiple abrasive units placed on the binding layer. Each abrasive
unit has an abrasive layer and an abrasive unit substrate. The
abrasive layer is a diamond film formed by chemical vapor
deposition and has multiple abrasive tips. Heights of the abrasive
units are equal to make the CMP conditioner have a planarized
surface. Preferably, the CMP conditioner has the abrasive units of
equal thicknesses and the binding layer of a fixed thickness to
form the planarized surface. Alternatively, the CMP conditioner has
the abrasive units having partially equal or different thicknesses
and the binding layer of various thicknesses, thereby matching the
abrasive units of different thicknesses to form the planarized
surface.
[0013] The heights of the abrasive units of the present invention
are equal. However, due to the slight precision error during the
manufacturing process, a height difference between any two of the
abrasive units possibly exists. The height difference between any
two of the abrasive units is less than 20 micrometers, preferably
10 micrometers, which can be achieved by controlling the
manufacturing process.
[0014] Shape of the abrasive tips of the present invention can be
customized by the need of users or the polishing condition. The
abrasive tips are in the shape of, but not limited to, knife edges,
cones, arcs, cylinders, pyramids, or prisms. Preferably, the
abrasive tips are in the shape of pyramids. Alternatively, the
abrasive tips are in the shape of prisms. Alternatively, the
abrasive tips are cylindrical in shape.
[0015] Alignment directions or tip angles of the abrasive tips of
the present invention can be customized by the need of users or the
polishing condition. The alignment directions of the abrasive tip
are uniform, partially uniform, or different. Preferably, the
abrasive tips are perpendicular to a pad. Alternatively, the
abrasive tips are non-perpendicular to the pad.
[0016] The tip angles of the abrasive tip are equal, partially
equal, or different. Preferably, the tip angles of the abrasive
tips are 60 degrees, 90 degrees, or 120 degrees. Alternatively, the
tip angles of some of the abrasive tips are 60 degrees and the tip
angles of the other abrasive tips are 90 degrees.
[0017] Besides, horizontal distances between any two neighboring
abrasive tips of the present invention can be customized by the
need of users or the polishing condition. The horizontal distances
between any two neighboring abrasive tips are equal, partially
equal, or different. Preferably, the horizontal distances between
any two neighboring abrasive tips are 1.5 times, 2 times, or 3
times larger than an outer diameter of the abrasive tips.
Alternatively, some of the horizontal distances between any two
neighboring abrasive tips are 2 times larger than the outer
diameter of the abrasive tips and the other of the horizontal
distances between any two neighboring abrasive tips are 3 times
larger than the outer diameter of the abrasive tips.
[0018] A thickness of the substrate of the present invention and
the thicknesses of the abrasive units can be customized by the need
of users or the polishing condition. The thickness of the substrate
ranges from 10 millimeters (abbreviated as mm) to 200 mm.
Preferably, the thickness of the substrate ranges from 60 mm to 100
mm. More preferably, the thickness of the substrate is 80 mm. The
thicknesses of the abrasive units are equal, partially equal, or
different. Preferably, the thicknesses of the abrasive units range
from 5 mm to 100 mm. More preferably, the thicknesses of the
abrasive units range from 15 mm to 30 mm. In the best condition,
the thicknesses of the abrasive units are 20 mm.
[0019] Preferably, a middle layer is disposed between the abrasive
layer and the abrasive unit substrate. The middle layer is made of
the group consisting of aluminum oxide, silicon carbide, and
aluminum nitride. More preferably, the middle layer is silicon
carbide.
[0020] The middle layer of the present invention can be formed by,
but is not limited to, chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor
deposition, soldering, or brazing.
[0021] The abrasive layer of the present invention is made of
monocrystalline diamond or polycrystalline diamond. Preferably, the
abrasive layer is made of polycrystalline diamond and a crystal
dimension of the abrasive layer ranges from 5 nanometers to 50
micrometers. More preferably, the crystal dimension of the abrasive
layer ranges from 10 nanometers to 20 micrometers. The abrasive
unit substrate of the present invention is a conductive substrate
or an insulating substrate. The conductive substrate is made of
molybdenum, tungsten, or tungsten carbide. A patterned surface with
multiple surface tips can be formed on the conductive substrate by
electric discharge machining and the abrasive layer are
successively formed on the surface tips by chemical vapor
deposition to obtain the abrasive tips. Alternatively, a patterned
surface with multiple surface tips can be formed on the insulating
substrate by mechanical polishing or laser processing, and the
abrasive layer are successively formed on the surface tips by
chemical vapor deposition to obtain the abrasive tips.
Alternatively, a surface of the abrasive unit substrate is flat.
The abrasive layer is deposited on the abrasive unit substrate by
chemical vapor deposition and has multiple abrasive tips. The
insulating substrate is made of ceramic material or monocrystalline
material. Preferably, the ceramic material is silicon carbide. The
monocrystalline material is silicon or aluminum oxide.
[0022] The binding layer of the present invention can be customized
by the need of users or the polishing condition. The binding layer
is made of, but not limited to, ceramic material, brazing material,
electroplating material, metallic material, or polymeric material.
Preferably, the binding layer is made of brazing material. The
brazing material is made of the group consisting of iron, cobalt,
nickel, chromium, manganese, silicon, aluminum, or any combination
thereof. Alternatively, the binding layer is made of polymeric
material. The polymeric material is epoxy resin, polyester resin,
polyacrylate resin, or phenol resin.
[0023] A component or a dimension of the substrate of the present
invention can be customized by the need of users or the polishing
condition. The substrate is stainless steel substrate, die steel
substrate, metal alloy substrate, ceramic substrate, plastic
substrate, or any combination thereof. Preferably, the substrate is
stainless steel substrate.
[0024] Preferably, the substrate is a flat substrate or a notch
substrate. More preferably, the substrate is the flat substrate.
Alternatively, the substrate is the notch substrate.
[0025] The polishing effect of the CMP conditioner of present
invention is achieved by using the abrasive units of equal
thicknesses and the binding layer of a fixed thickness to form the
planarized surface, or using the abrasive units having partially
equal or totally different thicknesses and the binding layer with
various thicknesses, thereby matching the abrasive units of
different thicknesses to form the planarized surface. The
planarized surface can improve the polishing effect of the CMP
conditioner.
[0026] Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the
invention will become more apparent from the following detailed
description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying
drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0027] FIG. 1 is a side view of a CMP conditioner in accordance
with Embodiment 1 of the present invention;
[0028] FIG. 2 is a side view of a CMP conditioner in accordance
with Embodiment 2 of the present invention;
[0029] FIG. 3 is a top view of a CMP conditioner in accordance with
Embodiment 1 of the present invention;
[0030] FIG. 4A is a top view of an abrasive unit of a CMP
conditioner in accordance with Embodiment 1 of the present
invention;
[0031] FIG. 4B is a top view of an abrasive unit of a CMP
conditioner in accordance with Embodiment 3 of the present
invention; and
[0032] FIG. 4C is a top view of an abrasive unit of a CMP
conditioner in accordance with Embodiment 4 of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Embodiment 1
[0033] With reference to FIG. 1, the present invention provides a
chemical mechanical polishing conditioner 1. The chemical
mechanical polishing conditioner 1 comprises a substrate 10, a
binding layer 11, and multiple abrasive units 12. The substrate 10
is made of stainless steel. The substrate 10 is a flat substrate
and has a thickness of 80 mm. The binding layer 11 is disposed on
the substrate 10. The abrasive units 12 are annularly placed on the
binding layer 11; in other words, the abrasive units 12 are fixed
on the substrate 10 via the binding layer 11. Thicknesses of the
abrasive units 12 are equal. Each abrasive unit 12 has an abrasive
unit substrate 13 and an abrasive layer 14. The abrasive unit
substrate 13 is a ceramic substrate made of silicon carbide. A
surface of the abrasive unit substrate 13 is a patterned surface
with multiple surface tips, and the abrasive layer 14 is
successively formed on the surface tips by chemical vapor
deposition to obtain abrasive tips. The abrasive tips are in the
shape of pyramids. Specifically, with reference to FIG. 4A, the
abrasive tips are continuously arranged on the abrasive unit
substrate 13 with an array pattern. The abrasive tips are in the
shape of quadrangular pyramids. Alignment directions of the
abrasive tips are uniform. Tip angles of the abrasive tips are
equal. The abrasive units 12 are fixed on the substrate 10 through
the binding layer 11. In addition, heights of the abrasive units 12
are equal to make the chemical mechanical polishing conditioner 1
have a planarized surface. Due to the slight precision error during
manufacturing process, a height difference between any two of the
abrasive units 12 is less than 10 micrometers.
[0034] With reference to FIG. 3, the abrasive units 12 with equal
heights are on the substrate 10 and the binding layer 11. Each
abrasive unit 12 comprises the abrasive unit substrate 13 and the
abrasive layer 14. The abrasive tips are in the shape of pyramids.
Besides, the abrasive units 12 are annularly placed on the binding
layer 11. Said height of the abrasive units 12 is the shortest
distance between the abrasive tip and a bottom surface of the
substrate 10. Said thickness of the abrasive units 12 is the
shortest distance between the abrasive tip and a bottom surface of
the abrasive unit substrate 13.
Embodiment 2
[0035] With reference to FIG. 2, the CMP conditioner in Embodiment
2 is similar with the CMP conditioner in Embodiment 1. The
difference between the two embodiments is that the thicknesses of
the abrasive units 22 of Embodiment 2 are partially equal. The
heights of the abrasive unit 22 are still equal; that is to say,
the chemical mechanical polishing conditioner also has a planarized
surface. The planarized surface is achieved by controlling a
thickness of the binding layer 21 to match the abrasive units 22
having partially equal thicknesses.
[0036] The CMP conditioner of the present embodiment comprises the
substrate 20, the binding layer 21, and the abrasive units 22. The
substrate 20 is made of stainless steel. The substrate 20 is a flat
substrate and has a thickness of 80 mm. The binding layer 21 is
disposed on the substrate 20. The abrasive units 22 are placed on
the binding layer 21; in other words, the abrasive units 22 are
fixed on the substrate 20 through the binding layer 21. The
abrasive unit substrate 23 is a ceramic substrate made of silicon
carbide. The abrasive unit substrates 23 have two different
thicknesses, 20 mm and 30 mm. The surface of the abrasive unit
substrate 23 is flat. The abrasive layer 24 is deposited on the
abrasive unit substrate 23 by chemical vapor deposition. The
abrasive layer 24 has the abrasive tips. The abrasive tips are in
the shape of pyramids, more specifically, quadrangular pyramids
(such as FIG. 4A). The abrasive tips are continuously arranged on
the abrasive unit substrate 23 with an array pattern. The alignment
directions of the abrasive tips are uniform. The tip angles of the
abrasive tip are equal. The abrasive units 22 are fixed on the
substrate 20 through the binding layer 21. The planarized surface
of the chemical mechanical polishing conditioner is achieved by
controlling the binding layer 21 to match the abrasive units
22.
Embodiment 3
[0037] The CMP conditioner in Embodiment 3 is similar to the CMP
conditioner in Embodiment 1. The difference between the two
embodiments is that the abrasive tips of the CMP conditioner in
Embodiment 1 are in the shape of pyramids and the abrasive tips of
the CMP conditioner in Embodiment 3 are in different shape to the
abrasive tips of the CMP conditioner in Embodiment 1.
[0038] With reference to FIG. 4A, the abrasive tips of the CMP
conditioner in Embodiment 1 are in the shape of pyramids and the
abrasive tips are continuously arranged on the abrasive unit
substrate 13 with an array pattern. With reference to FIG. 4B, the
abrasive tips 35 of Embodiment 3 are in the shape of prisms,
specifically, quadrangle prism. The abrasive tips 35 of the
abrasive layer 34 are continuously arranged on the abrasive unit
substrate 33 with an array pattern.
Embodiment 4
[0039] The CMP conditioner in Embodiment 4 is similar to the CMP
conditioner in Embodiment 1. The difference between the two
embodiments is that the abrasive tips of the CMP conditioner in
Embodiment 1 are in the shape of pyramids and the abrasive tips of
the CMP conditioner in Embodiment 3 are in different shape to the
abrasive tips of the CMP conditioner in Embodiment 1.
[0040] With reference to FIG. 4A, the abrasive tips of the CMP
conditioner in Embodiment 1 are in the shape of pyramids and the
abrasive tips are continuously arranged on the abrasive unit
substrate 13 with an array pattern. With reference to FIG. 4C, the
abrasive tips 45 of Embodiment 4 are cylindrical in shape. The
abrasive tips 45 of the abrasive layer 44 are continuously arranged
on the abrasive unit substrate 43 with an array pattern.
[0041] Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the
present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description,
together with details of the structure and features of the
invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made
in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and
arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the
full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in
which the appended claims are expressed.
* * * * *