A slurry for polishing a carbon-containing silicon oxide, the slurry containing abrasive grains and a liquid medium, in which the abrasive grains include first particles and second particles in contact with the first particles, a particle size of the second particles is smaller than a particle size of the first particles, the first particles contain cerium oxide, and the second particles contain a cerium compound.

The present disclosure relates to an endpoint detection window of a polishing pad for use in a polishing process. The polishing pad may prevent an error in detection of the endpoint of the polishing process by preventing a difference in endpoint detection performance from occurring due to a difference in the wavelength of a laser between polishing apparatuses. The present disclosure may also provide a method of fabricating a semiconductor device using the polishing pad.

A multi-channel rotary joint, wherein, between the opposed peripheral surfaces of a housing body (1) and a rotary shaft body (2) coupled thereto for free relative rotation, four or more mechanical seals (3) are provided that effect sealing using the relative rotational sliding contact action of opposed end faces (31a, 32a) of stationary sealing rings (32) provided on the housing body (1) and rotating sealing rings (31) provided on the rotary shaft body (2), and the joint has a single rotating sealing ring (31A) that does double duty as the rotating sealing rings (31, 31) for adjacent mechanical seals (3, 3). In this joint, coating layers (10a, 10a) made from a material with a higher heat transfer coefficient and hardness compared to the material of the double-duty rotating sealing ring (31A) are formed on both end faces (31a, 31a) of the rotating sealing ring (31A).

Disclosed is a wafer processing apparatus. The wafer processing apparatus includes a first surface plate on which a plurality of carriers is arranged, a first gear arranged at the central region of the first surface plate and engaged with the plurality of carriers, a second gear arranged around the edge region of the first surface plate and engaged with the plurality of carriers, a motor rotating the first surface plate in a first direction, a fixing hanger arranged opposite the first surface plate, and a second surface plate hung on the fixing hanger such that a clearance between the first surface plate and the second surface plate may be varied.

A method for treating a mold includes grinding an outer metal surface of a mold body of the mold with a first material; lapping the outer metal surface after the grinding with a second material that is finer than the first material; and polishing the outer metal surface after the lapping to achieve an average surface roughness (R.sub.a) less than or equal to about 0.15 m and a waviness height (W.sub.a) less than or equal to about 100 nm. A mold for shaping glass-based material can include a mold body having an outer metal surface, wherein the outer metal surface has an average surface roughness (R.sub.a) less than or equal to about 0.15 m and a waviness height (W.sub.a) less than or equal to about 100 nm.

Methods of thinning a plurality of semiconductor wafers and apparatuses for carrying out the same are disclosed. A grinding module within a set of grinding modules receives and grinds a semiconductor wafer. A polishing module receives the semiconductor wafer from the grinding module and polishes the wafer. The polishing module is configured to polish the semiconductor wafer in less time than the grinding module is configured to grind the corresponding wafer.

The present invention is a CMP polishing agent, including polishing particles, a protective film-forming agent, and water, wherein the protective film-forming agent is a copolymer of styrene and acrylonitrile, and an average molecular weight of the copolymer is 500 or more and 20000 or less. This provides a polishing agent which can polish an insulation film with few polishing scratches and has high polishing selectivity of an insulation film to a polishing stop film in a CMP step, a method for manufacturing the polishing agent, and a method for polishing a substrate by using the polishing agent.

The present invention improves the accuracy of film thickness detection. A film thickness signal processing apparatus 230 is provided with a receiving unit 232 for receiving film thickness data output from an eddy-current sensor 210 for detecting the film thickness of a polishing object 102 along a surface to be polished thereof; an identifying unit 236 for identifying the effective range of the film thickness data on the basis of the film thickness data received by the receiving unit 232; and a correcting unit 238 for correcting the film thickness data within the effective range identified by the identifying unit 236.

A carrier head for a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus comprises: a base; a substrate receiving member comprising a plate portion having an outer surface for receiving a substrate and an inner surface at the back of the outer surface, a perimeter portion extended in a height direction from an edge of the plate portion, a securing portion extended from an outer part of the perimeter portion and connected to a lower part of the base, and a contact portion extended from an inner part of the perimeter portion; a contact coupling structure connected to the lower part of the base to provide a contact surface to the contact portion; and a perimeter portion pressurizing chamber formed by taking the securing portion and the contact portion as chamber walls when the contact portion contacts firmly the contact coupling structure by means of fluid pressure.

A carrier head for a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus comprises: a base; a substrate receiving member comprising a plate portion having an outer surface for receiving a substrate and an inner surface at the back of the outer surface, a perimeter portion extended in a height direction from an edge of the plate portion, a securing portion extended from an outer part of the perimeter portion and connected to a lower part of the base, and a contact portion extended from an inner part of the perimeter portion; a contact coupling structure connected to the lower part of the base to provide a contact surface to the contact portion; and a perimeter portion pressurizing chamber formed by taking the securing portion and the contact portion as chamber walls when the contact portion contacts firmly the contact coupling structure by means of fluid pressure.