Polishing systems and methods are described. An exemplar polishing system includes: (i) a jig designed to secure mobile device; (ii) a polishing head designed to contact and polish a mobile device surface; (iii) a spindle disposed above the jig and fitted with the polishing head; (iv) a slurry dispenser arranged adjacent to the spindle and designed to store and dispense polishing slurry on the mobile device surface; and (v) a central controller programmed to control operation of the jig, the spindle, and the slurry dispenser such that during an operative state of the jig and the spindle, and under control of the central controller, the slurry dispenser dispenses polishing slurry to facilitate polishing of the mobile device surface.

Embodiments of the invention provide a non-uniform substrate polishing apparatus that includes a polishing pad with two or more zones, each zone adapted to apply a different slurry chemistry to a different area on a substrate to create a film thickness profile on the substrate having at least two different film thicknesses. Polishing methods and systems adapted to polish substrates are also provided, as are numerous other aspects.

A polishing apparatus includes: a plurality of polishing heads for holding a wafer, a polishing pad for polishing the wafer, a rotatable turn table having the polishing pad attached thereto, a turn table driving mechanism for rotating the turn table, a plurality of wafer-detecting sensors for detecting coming off of the wafer from the polishing head during polishing, wherein the polishing apparatus has the wafer-detecting sensor disposed above peripheral portions of the respective polishing heads and on each downstream side in a rotation direction of the turn table with respect to the respective polishing heads. The polishing apparatus can detect coming off of a wafer from a polishing head during polishing more rapidly, and can prevent a breakage of the wafer thereby.

A polishing apparatus includes: a plurality of polishing heads for holding a wafer, a polishing pad for polishing the wafer, a rotatable turn table having the polishing pad attached thereto, a turn table driving mechanism for rotating the turn table, a plurality of wafer-detecting sensors for detecting coming off of the wafer from the polishing head during polishing, wherein the polishing apparatus has the wafer-detecting sensor disposed above peripheral portions of the respective polishing heads and on each downstream side in a rotation direction of the turn table with respect to the respective polishing heads. The polishing apparatus can detect coming off of a wafer from a polishing head during polishing more rapidly, and can prevent a breakage of the wafer thereby.

A polishing pad for polishing a workpiece to a mirror finish is attached to a rotatable polishing table of a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus. The workpiece, such as a metal body, is held by a carrier and pressed against the polishing pad. This polishing pad includes: an elastic pad having a polishing surface; a deformable base layer that supports the elastic pad; and an adhesive layer that joins the elastic pad to the base layer.

A polishing pad for polishing a workpiece to a mirror finish is attached to a rotatable polishing table of a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus. The workpiece, such as a metal body, is held by a carrier and pressed against the polishing pad. This polishing pad includes: an elastic pad having a polishing surface; a deformable base layer that supports the elastic pad; and an adhesive layer that joins the elastic pad to the base layer.

A polishing table holds a polishing pad. A top ring holds a semiconductor wafer. A swing arm holds the top ring. The swing arm swings around a swing center on the swing arm during polishing. An optical sensor is disposed on the polishing table and measures an optical characteristic changeable in accordance with a variation in film thickness of the semiconductor wafer. A fluid supply control apparatus determines a distance from an axis of rotation to the optical sensor when the semiconductor wafer is rotated by the top ring. An end point detection section detects a polishing end point indicating an end of polishing based on the optical characteristic measured by the optical sensor and the determined distance.

A wafer processing method includes a first grinding step and a second grinding step. In the first grinding step, first grinding abrasives are moved in a processing feed direction that is a direction orthogonal to a holding surface of a chuck table of grinding apparatus and a wafer is ground to form a first circular recess in the back surface of the wafer. In the second grinding step, second grinding abrasives formed of finer abrasive grains than the first grinding abrasives are moved down in an oblique direction from the center side of the wafer toward the periphery of the wafer and the first circular recess is ground.

A wafer processing method includes a first grinding step and a second grinding step. In the first grinding step, first grinding abrasives are moved in a processing feed direction that is a direction orthogonal to a holding surface of a chuck table of grinding apparatus and a wafer is ground to form a first circular recess in the back surface of the wafer. In the second grinding step, second grinding abrasives formed of finer abrasive grains than the first grinding abrasives are moved down in an oblique direction from the center side of the wafer toward the periphery of the wafer and the first circular recess is ground.

A polishing apparatus includes a first substrate holder capable of holding a substrate coated with a film. The apparatus also includes a first pad holder capable of holding a first pad. The apparatus further includes a first driver configured to translate the first pad on a surface of the film so as to cause the first pad to polish the film.