公开(公告)号：US20240181594A1

公开(公告)日：2024-06-06

申请号：US18554643

申请日：2022-01-17

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Masashi KABASAWA ,  Toshimitsu SASAKI ,  Yoichi SHIOKAWA ,  Keita YAGI ,  Yuki WATANABE ,  Nachiketa CHAUHAN

IPC: B24B37/015 ,  B24B37/013 ,  B24B49/04 ,  B24B49/14

CPC classification number: B24B37/015 ,  B24B37/013 ,  B24B49/04 ,  B24B49/14

Abstract: The present application relates to a polishing method and a polishing apparatus for polishing a substrate, such as a wafer, while pressing the substrate against a polishing surface of a polishing pad, and more particularly to a polishing method and a polishing apparatus for polishing a substrate while regulating a polishing load based on measurement values of a film-thickness measuring device. The polishing method includes: controlling a temperature of a polishing surface of a polishing pad to a predetermined temperature by use of a pad-temperature regulating apparatus; and polishing a substrate while controlling a polishing load for pressing the substrate against the polishing surface based on measurement values from a film-thickness measuring device provided in the polishing pad.

公开(公告)号：US20230381919A1

公开(公告)日：2023-11-30

申请号：US18232278

申请日：2023-08-09

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Keita YAGI ,  Yoichi SHIOKAWA ,  Toshimitsu SASAKI ,  Yuki WATANABE ,  Nachiketa CHAUHAN

IPC: B24B49/12 ,  B24B37/013

CPC classification number: B24B49/12 ,  B24B37/013 ,  H01L21/304

Abstract: A substrate polishing method capable of reducing an influence of variation in spectrum of reflected light from a substrate, such as a wafer, and determining an accurate film thickness is disclosed. The method includes: polishing a surface of a substrate by pressing the substrate against a polishing pad on a rotating polishing table; producing a spectrum of reflected light from the surface of the substrate each time the polishing table makes one rotation; creating a three-dimensional data containing a plurality of spectra arranged along polishing time; and determining a film thickness of the substrate based on the three-dimensional data.

公开(公告)号：US20190118333A1

公开(公告)日：2019-04-25

申请号：US16166946

申请日：2018-10-22

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Keita YAGI ,  Yuki WATANABE ,  Toshimitsu SASAKI

IPC: B24B37/013 ,  B24B37/04 ,  B24B49/10 ,  B24B49/16

Abstract: A polishing method which can acquire an actual position of a film-thickness measurement point, and can therefore apply an optimum polishing pressure to a substrate such as a wafer is disclosed. The method includes: causing a substrate detection sensor to generate substrate detection signals in a preset cycle and causing a film-thickness sensor to generate a film-thickness signal at a predetermined measurement point during polishing of the substrate while the substrate detection sensor and the film-thickness sensor are moving across the surface of the substrate; calculating an angle of eccentricity of a center of the substrate relative to a center of the polishing head from the number of substrate detection signals; correcting a position of the predetermined measurement point based on the angle of eccentricity; and controlling polishing pressure at which the polishing head presses the substrate based on the film-thickness signal and the corrected position of the predetermined measurement point.

公开(公告)号：US20240359285A1

公开(公告)日：2024-10-31

申请号：US18642234

申请日：2024-04-22

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Yuki WATANABE

IPC: B24B37/013

CPC classification number: B24B37/013

Abstract: A method capable of detecting a wrong workpiece (e.g., wafer), which is not an object to be polished, is disclosed. The method includes: creating inspection spectrum data of reflected light from a workpiece before polishing of the workpiece or after beginning of polishing of the workpiece; inputting the inspection spectrum data to an autoencoder; calculating a difference between output data from the autoencoder and the inspection spectrum data; and determining that, when the difference is larger than a threshold value, the workpiece used to create the inspection spectrum data is a wrong workpiece which is not an object to be polished.

公开(公告)号：US20240353344A1

公开(公告)日：2024-10-24

申请号：US18634702

申请日：2024-04-12

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Masaki KINOSHITA ,  Keita YAGI ,  Taro TAKAHASHI ,  Yoichi SHIOKAWA ,  Yuki WATANABE

IPC: G01N21/84 ,  G01N21/95 ,  H01L21/304 ,  H01L21/66

CPC classification number: G01N21/8422 ,  G01N21/9501 ,  H01L21/304 ,  H01L22/12

Abstract: Provided is a film thickness measurement device, including: a head that holds a substrate to be polished and is capable of moving the substrate, a stage made of transparent material; a liquid supply unit configured to supply liquid onto the stage; a liquid discharge unit configured to discharge the liquid on the stage to the outside; a measurement unit configured to be placed on a side opposite to the head across the stage and to optically measure a film thickness on a surface of the substrate that is placed across the stage; and a control unit configured to move at least one of the stage and the head toward the other, and to irradiate the substrate with light while the surface of the substrate is immersed in the liquid, thereby performing film thickness measurement.

公开(公告)号：US20240255440A1

公开(公告)日：2024-08-01

申请号：US18419952

申请日：2024-01-23

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Yuki WATANABE

IPC: G01N21/95 ,  G01B11/06

CPC classification number: G01N21/9501 ,  G01B11/0633 ,  G01B2210/56 ,  G01N2201/1293 ,  G01N2201/1296

Abstract: An abnormality detection method that can automatically detect abnormality in preset spectrum data, such as reference intensity data (base intensity data) used for optical measurement of a film thickness is disclosed. The abnormality detection method includes: creating the preset spectrum data before polishing of the workpiece; inputting the preset spectrum data to an autoencoder which is a trained model constructed by machine learning using training data including a plurality of normal preset spectra data; calculating a difference between output data output from the autoencoder and the preset spectrum data; and determining that there is an abnormality in the preset spectrum data when the difference is larger than a threshold value.

公开(公告)号：US20240359290A1

公开(公告)日：2024-10-31

申请号：US18642397

申请日：2024-04-22

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Keita YAGI ,  Toshimitsu SASAKI ,  Yoichi SHIOKAWA ,  Yuki WATANABE ,  Masashi KABASAWA

IPC: B24B49/04 ,  B24B49/12

CPC classification number: B24B49/04 ,  B24B49/12

Abstract: A polishing method includes: during polishing of the workpiece, creating a reference spectrum history and a monitoring spectrum history by repeatedly producing a reference spectrum and a monitoring spectrum at two points on the workpiece; calculating a plurality of reference history differences that are differences between a latest monitoring spectrum and a plurality of reference spectra in the reference spectrum history; calculating a plurality of monitoring history differences that are differences between a latest reference spectrum and a plurality of monitoring spectra in the monitoring spectrum history; calculating a film-thickness difference between a monitoring point and a reference point based on a local minimum point of a reference history difference or a monitoring history difference.

公开(公告)号：US20190160626A1

公开(公告)日：2019-05-30

申请号：US16201546

申请日：2018-11-27

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Yuki WATANABE ,  Keita YAGI

IPC: B24B37/005

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus includes a polishing head defining plural pressure chambers D1 to D5 for pressing a wafer W on a polishing pad 42, a pressure control unit performing pressure feedback control by individually controlling pressures in the pressure chambers D1 to D5, a film thickness measurement unit measuring a film thickness distribution of the wafer W being polished, a storage unit storing multiple pieces of information on a preset pressure of the pressure chambers D1 to D5, and a response characteristic acquisition unit changing the preset pressure every time a predetermined condition is satisfied during polishing of the wafer W, measuring a polishing rate applied to the wafer W, and acquiring a response characteristic of the polishing of the wafer W. The response characteristic indicates responsiveness of the polishing of the wafer W to the pressure feedback. The response characteristic is acquired based on the obtained polishing rates.

公开(公告)号：US20190047117A1

公开(公告)日：2019-02-14

申请号：US16055733

申请日：2018-08-06

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Yuki WATANABE ,  Keita YAGI

IPC: B24B49/12 ,  G01B11/06 ,  B24B37/013 ,  B24B37/04 ,  B24B37/32 ,  B24B37/20 ,  B24B7/22

Abstract: A substrate polishing apparatus includes: a top ring for pressing a substrate against a polishing pad; a press mechanism that independently presses a plurality of regions of the substrate; a spectrum generating unit that directs light onto a surface of the substrate to be polished, receives reflected light, and calculates a reflectivity spectrum corresponding to the wavelength of the reflected light; a profile signal generating unit that generates a polishing profile of the substrate when the reflectivity spectra at a plurality of measurement points on the substrate are input; a pressure control unit that controls pressing forces to be pressed against the plurality of regions of the substrate by the press mechanism based on the polishing profile; and an end detecting unit that detects an end of substrate polishing without being based on the polishing profile.

公开(公告)号：US20240278378A1

公开(公告)日：2024-08-22

申请号：US18544073

申请日：2023-12-18

Applicant: EBARA CORPORATION

Inventor： Yoichi SHIOKAWA ,  Masaki KINOSHITA ,  Yuki WATANABE ,  Toshifumi KIMBA ,  Keita TANOUE

IPC: B24B37/005 ,  B24B37/20

CPC classification number: B24B37/005 ,  B24B37/20

Abstract: A polishing apparatus that can improve an accuracy of position coordinates associated with a measured value of film thickness is disclosed. The polishing apparatus includes: a pad-thickness measuring device configured to measure a thickness of the polishing pad; an optical film-thickness measuring device configured to emit light obliquely to the substrate, and determine measured values of film thickness at measurement points; and a controller configured to associates the measured values of the film thickness with measurement coordinates indicating positions of the measurement points. The controller is configured to determine amount of movement of the measurement coordinates corresponding to a measured value of the thickness of the polishing pad based on correlation data indicating a relationship between the thickness of the polishing pad and the amount of movement of the measurement coordinates; and correct the measurement coordinates associated with the measured values of the film thickness based on the determined amount of movement of the measurement coordinates.