Described are slurry compositions useful in chemical-mechanical processing of a nickel layer of a substrate, wherein the slurry compositions contain abrasive particles that include silica particles that are cationically charged at a low pH.

A polishing composition of the present invention is to be used for polishing an object including a portion containing a group III-V compound material. The polishing composition contains abrasive grains, an oxidizing agent, and a water-soluble polymer. When the polishing composition is left to stand for one day in an environment with a temperature of 25° C., the water-soluble polymer may be adsorbed on the abrasive grains at 5,000 or more molecules per 1 μm.sup.2 of the surface area of the abrasive grains. Alternatively, the water-soluble polymer may be a compound that reduces the water contact angle of the portion containing a group III-V compound material of the object after being polished with the polishing composition.

The invention provides a chemical-mechanical polishing composition comprising (a) abrasive particles, (b) a cobalt corrosion inhibitor, (c) a cobalt dishing control agent, wherein the cobalt dishing control agent comprises an anionic head group and a C.sub.13-C.sub.20 aliphatic tail group, (d) an oxidizing agent that oxidizes cobalt, and (e) water, wherein the polishing composition has a pH of about 3 to about 8.5. The invention further provides a method of chemically-mechanically polishing a substrate with the inventive chemical-mechanical polishing composition. Typically, the substrate contains cobalt.

To provide a technique with which in a case where sulfonic acid-modified aqueous anionic sol is used as abrasive grain, in a polishing composition for polishing an object to be polished that contains SiN, the stability of the SiN polishing rate with time can be improved, and the content of hydrogen peroxide can be decreased.

In a polishing composition having a pH of 6 or less, sulfonic acid-modified colloidal silica obtained by immobilizing sulfonic acid on surfaces of silica particles, and water are allowed to be contained, at this time, as the sulfonic acid-modified colloidal silica, the one derived from sulfonic acid-modified aqueous anionic silica sol produced by a production method including a first reaction step of obtaining a reactant by heating raw colloidal silica having a number distribution ratio of 10% or less of microparticles having a particle diameter of 40% or less relative to a volume average particle diameter based on Heywood diameter (equivalent circle diameter) as determined by image analysis using a scanning electron microscope in the presence of a silane coupling agent having a functional group chemically convertible to a sulfonic acid group; and a second reaction step of converting the functional group to a sulfonic acid group by treating the reactant is used.

An aspect of the present disclosure provides a CMP polishing liquid for polishing polysilicon, the CMP polishing liquid containing: abrasive grains; and a cationic polymer, in which the cationic polymer includes at least one selected from the group consisting of a polymer A having a main chain containing a nitrogen atom and a carbon atom and a hydroxyl group bonded to the carbon atom and an allylamine polymer B. Another aspect of the present disclosure provides a polishing method including a step of polishing a material to be polished by using this CMP polishing liquid.

A silicon carbide substrate is composed of silicon carbide, and when a main surface thereof is etched with chlorine gas, the overall length of linear etch-pit groups observed in the main surface is equal to or less than the diameter of the substrate.

Disclosed herein is a CMP slurry composition for polishing copper. The CMP slurry composition includes: polishing particles; and deionized water, wherein the polishing particles include inorganic particles and organic particles, and both the inorganic particles and the organic particles have a positive zeta potential. A polishing method comprising polishing a copper wire using the CMP slurry composition also be provided.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a polishing ring assembly suitable for polishing an electrostatic chuck and method of using the same. In one embodiment, the polishing ring assembly has a retaining ring assembly and an electrostatic chuck fixture. The retaining ring assembly includes an inner diameter and a top surface, a plurality of outer drive rings wherein the plurality of outer drive rings are placed on the top surface of the ceramic retaining ring. The electrostatic chuck fixture includes an electrostatic chuck drive plate adjacent to the inner diameter of in the ceramic retaining ring. The electrostatic chuck drive plate has a lock to secure retaining ring assembly with the electrostatic chuck fixture without transferring the weight from one assembly over to the other through the locking mechanism.

Methods for fabricating a chemical-mechanical polishing composition include growing colloidal silica abrasive particles in a liquid including an aminosilane compound such that the aminosilane compound becomes incorporated in the abrasive particles. A dispersion including such colloidal silica abrasive particles may be further processed to obtain a chemical-mechanical polishing composition including colloidal silica particles having the aminosilane compound incorporated therein.

The present invention provides aqueous chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) polishing compositions have excellent heat aging and shelf stability in the form of concentrates comprising a mixture of a compound containing two quaternary ammonium groups, such as hexabutyl C.sub.1-C.sub.8 alkanediammonium dihydroxides or salts thereof, preferably N,N,N,N′,N′,N′-hexabutyl-1,4-butanediammonium dihydroxide (HBBAH), and aminosilane group containing silica particles in the amount of from 1 to 30 wt. % or, preferably, from 15 to 22 wt. %, as solids based on the total weight of the composition, the composition having a pH ranging from 3 to 5 or, preferably, from 3.5 to 4.5 wherein the composition is stable against visible precipitation or sedimentation at a 15 wt. % solids content after heat aging at a temperature of 45° C. for at least 6 days.