Embodiments of a high-speed rotatable workpiece abrasive polishing head are disclosed that allow flat surfaced hard material workpieces or sapphire or semiconductor wafers to be polished at high abrading speeds that can use water-mist cooled quick-change fixed abrasive island-type discs. Workpieces can be quickly attached with vacuum to a rotatable workpiece plate having a curved (e.g., spherical) bearing with an offset spherical center of rotation located at the workpiece abraded surface. Abrading contact there prevents lateral abrading friction forces from tilting workpieces and causing non-flat workpiece surfaces. The workpiece carrier plate can be rotationally driven by a floating drive shaft having a spherical spline head that contacts the workpiece carrier plate at a position close to the workpiece abraded surface to avoid tilting of the workpiece due to the shaft-applied workpiece rotation forces. The workpiece head can allow the workpieces to either float in contact with the abrasive or be held in rigid contact with the abrasive.

Embodiments of a high-speed rotatable workpiece abrasive polishing head are disclosed that allow flat surfaced hard material workpieces or sapphire or semiconductor wafers to be polished at high abrading speeds that can use water-mist cooled quick-change fixed abrasive island-type discs. Workpieces can be quickly attached with vacuum to a rotatable workpiece plate having a curved (e.g., spherical) bearing with an offset spherical center of rotation located at the workpiece abraded surface. Abrading contact there prevents lateral abrading friction forces from tilting workpieces and causing non-flat workpiece surfaces. The workpiece carrier plate can be rotationally driven by a floating drive shaft having a spherical spline head that contacts the workpiece carrier plate at a position close to the workpiece abraded surface to avoid tilting of the workpiece due to the shaft-applied workpiece rotation forces. The workpiece head can allow the workpieces to either float in contact with the abrasive or be held in rigid contact with the abrasive.

A recycled polishing pad includes an upper layer pad and a supplementary pad. The upper layer pad includes a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface. The first surface has a plurality of first grooves and the second surface has a plurality of second grooves. The upper layer pad further includes a connecting body connecting the first grooves and the second grooves. The supplementary pad is in contact with the second surface of the upper layer pad. A depth of each of the first grooves is less than a depth of each of the second grooves.

A CMP tool for polishing a semiconductor wafer is disclosed. The CMP tool includes a polishing head with a wafer carrier unit on which a wafer is mounted for polishing. The wafer carrier unit includes a support plate with a seal disposed on its sidewall. The seal improves sealing of the flexible membrane to the support plate. This improves reliability by avoiding slippage during the dechucking stage as well as wafer slippage during wafer loading stage, thereby avoiding wafer damage as well as non-uniform polishing.

A CMP tool for polishing a semiconductor wafer is disclosed. The CMP tool includes a polishing head with a wafer carrier unit on which a wafer is mounted for polishing. The wafer carrier unit includes a support plate with a seal disposed on its sidewall. The seal improves sealing of the flexible membrane to the support plate. This improves reliability by avoiding slippage during the dechucking stage as well as wafer slippage during wafer loading stage, thereby avoiding wafer damage as well as non-uniform polishing.

Provided is a wafer polishing method capable of improving nanotopography characteristics within a site on the surface of a wafer having a 2 mm square area or a small area equivalent thereto and a silicon wafer polished by the wafer polishing method, and further provided is a method of chemical-mechanical polishing the surface of a wafer through a polishing step in two or more polishing steps with different polishing rates, in which the in-plane thickness variation (standard deviation) of a polishing pad 150 used in a polishing step with a machining allowance of 0.3 μm or more is 2.0 μm or less.

According to one embodiment, a polishing apparatus includes a holder for holding a polishing pad for polishing a surface of a substrate. A plurality of pressing members are configured to press a back surface side of the polishing pad while held by the holder. A driving unit is configured to selectively move pressing members in a direction towards the surface of the substrate so as to press the back surface side of the polishing pad.

According to one embodiment, a polishing apparatus includes a holder for holding a polishing pad for polishing a surface of a substrate. A plurality of pressing members are configured to press a back surface side of the polishing pad while held by the holder. A driving unit is configured to selectively move pressing members in a direction towards the surface of the substrate so as to press the back surface side of the polishing pad.

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.

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.