Slurry flow on the pad surface and its effects on oxide chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) performance were investigated in simulations and experiments. A concentric groove pad and the same pad with radial grooves were used to quantitatively compare the slurry saturation time (SST), material removal rate (MRR), and non-uniformity (NU) in polishing. The monitored coefficient of friction (COF) and its slope were analyzed and used to determine SSTs of 25.52 s for the concentric groove pad and 16.06 s for a certain radial groove pad. These values were well correlated with the simulation prediction, with around 5% error. Both the laminar flow and turbulent flow were included in the sliding mesh model. The back mixing effect, which delays fresh slurry supply, was found in the pressure distribution of the wafer–pad interface.
The material loss caused by bubble collapse during the micro-nano bubbles auxiliary chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process cannot be ignored. In this study, the material removal mechanism of cavitation in the polishing process was investigated in detail. Based on the mixed lubrication or thin film lubrication, bubble—wafer plastic deformation, spherical indentation theory, Johnson—Cook (J—C) constitutive model, and the assumption of periodic distribution of pad asperities, a new model suitable for micro-nano bubble auxiliary material removal in CMP was developed. The model integrates many parameters, including the reactant concentration, wafer hardness, polishing pad roughness, strain hardening, strain rate, micro-jet radius, and bubble radius. The model reflects the influence of active bubbles on material removal. A new and simple chemical reaction method was used to form a controllable number of micro-nano bubbles during the polishing process to assist in polishing silicon oxide wafers. The experimental results show that micro-nano bubbles can greatly increase the material removal rate (MRR) by about 400% and result in a lower surface roughness of 0.17 nm. The experimental results are consistent with the established model. In the process of verifying the model, a better understanding of the material removal mechanism involved in micro-nano bubbles in CMP was obtained.
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