A planarization method includes a grinding step of holding the opposite side to a separation surface in an SiC ingot by a rotatable chuck table and rotating a grinding wheel having plural grinding abrasives disposed in a ring manner to grind the separation surface of the SiC ingot held by the chuck table, and a flatness detection step of irradiating the separation surface of the SiC ingot exposed from the grinding wheel with light and detecting reflected light to detect the degree of flatness. The grinding step is ended when that the separation surface of the SiC ingot has become flat is detected in the flatness detection step.

Embodiments relate to a polishing pad, which comprises a window having a hardness similar to that of its polishing layer. Since the polishing pad comprises a window having a hardness and a polishing rate similar to those of its polishing layer, it can produce an effect of preventing scratches on a wafer during a CMP process. In addition, the polishing layer and the window of the polishing pad have a similar rate of change in hardness with respect to temperature, so that they can maintain a similar hardness despite a change in temperature during the CMP process.

Described herein are multi-layered windows for use in chemical-mechanical planarization (CMP) systems and CMP processes. The multi-layered windows of the present disclosure include a transparent structural layer and a hydrophilic surfactant applied to at least a portion of at least one surface of the transparent structural layer. Such multi-layered windows may be in the polishing pad, the platen, or both.

A stopper includes a head portion sized and configured to be coupled to an upper platen of a chemical-mechanical planarization system and a stopper leg sized and configured to direct a flow of liquid slurry applied to an upper planar surface of the upper platen substantially away from a lower surface of the upper platen.

Embodiments of the disclosure generally provide polishing pads having a composite pad body and methods for forming the polishing pads. In one embodiment, the composite pad body includes one or more first features formed from a first material or a first composition of materials, and one or more second features formed from a second material or a second composition of materials, wherein the one or more first features and the one or more second features are formed by depositing a plurality of layers comprising the first material or first composition of materials and second material or second composition of materials.

A polishing system includes a platen having a top surface to support an annular polishing pad, a carrier head to hold a substrate in contact with the annular polishing pad, a support structure extending above the platen and to which one or more polishing system components are secured, and a support post. The platen is rotatable about an axis of rotation that passes through approximately a center of the platen. The first support post has an upper end coupled to and supporting the support structure and a lower portion that is supported on the platen or that extends through an aperture in the platen.

Embodiments described herein relate to rotary unions for use in wafer cleaning processes. The rotary union includes a process media and a supporting media that interact in a gap between a nozzle and rotary element. By regulating the supporting media pressure, a non-contact seal is created within the gap. The non-contact seal prevents or controls process media leakage in a rotary union while enabling delivery of the process media through a platen directly underneath of a wafer without the risk of additional contamination of the process media, reducing the defect to the wafer. Additionally, the non-contact seal precludes particle generation due to seal wear, caused for example in face seals, and does not leech out any additional foreign elements.

A chemical mechanical polishing apparatus includes a polishing head, including a polishing head body, a membrane attached to a lower portion of the polishing head body, and a reflector disposed between the polishing head body and the membrane, a platen including an opening, an emitter disposed below the opening of the platen, the emitter configured to emit terahertz waves, a detector disposed below the opening of the platen, the detector configured to receive the terahertz waves emitted by the emitter and reflected by the reflector, and an analyzer configured to analyze an electrical signal generated by converting the terahertz waves received by the detector, the analyzer configured to determine a polishing end point.

A chemical mechanical polishing system includes a platen to support a polishing pad, a carrier head to hold a substrate and bring a lower surface of the substrate into contact with the polishing pad, and an in-situ friction monitoring system including a friction sensor. The friction sensor includes a pad portion having a substrate contacting portion with an upper surface to contact the lower surface of the substrate, and a pair of capacitive sensors positioned below and on opposing sides of the substrate contacting portion.

The present invention provides a chemical mechanical (CMP) polishing pad with a top surface, one or more apertures adapted to receive an endpoint detection window, an underside having a recessed portion and having one or more flanged endpoint detection windows (windows), each window having a flange adapted to fit snugly into the recessed portion of the underside of the polishing layer, the flange having a thickness slightly less than the depth of the recessed portion of the polishing layer (to allow for adhesive), having a detection area that fits snugly into an aperture in the polishing layer so that its top surface that lies substantially flush with the top surface of the polishing layer.