Substrate holding apparatus, substrate suction determination method, substrate polishing apparatus, substrate polishing method, method of removing liquid from upper surface of wafer to be polished, elastic film for pressing wafer against polishing pad, substrate release method, and constant amount gas supply apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2025140594-A1
Application number	US-202519011332-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jan 6, 2025
Priority date	Aug 6, 2018
Publication date	May 1, 2025
Grant date	—

Abstract

A substrate holding apparatus is provided, which includes a top ring main body to which an elastic film having a surface that can suck a substrate can be attached, a first line communicating with a first area of the plurality of areas, a second line communicating with a second area different from the first area of the plurality of areas, a pressure adjuster that can pressurize the first area by feeding fluid into the first area through the first line and can generate negative pressure in the second area through the second line, and a determiner that performs determination of whether or not the substrate is sucked to the elastic film based on a volume of the fluid fed into the first area or a measurement value corresponding to pressure in the first area.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A substrate holding apparatus comprising:
a top ring main body to which an elastic film comprising a surface that can suck a substrate can be attached, wherein when the elastic film is attached to the top ring main body, a plurality of areas are formed between the elastic film and the top ring main body; a first line communicating with a first area among the plurality of areas; a second line communicating with a second area different from the first area among the plurality of areas; a pressure adjuster capable of pressurizing the first area by feeding fluid into the first area through the first line, and capable of generating negative pressure in the second area through the second line; and a determiner configured to perform determination of whether the substrate is sucked to the elastic film based on a measurement value corresponding to a volume of the fluid fed into the first area or corresponding to pressure in the first area, wherein when the determination is performed, exhaust from the first area is not performed.

2 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the determiner performs the determination by using a fact that when the substrate is sucked to the elastic film, the volume of the fluid fed into the first area is smaller or the pressure in the first area is higher as compared with those when the substrate is not sucked to the elastic film.

3 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the pressure adjuster comprises a pressurizing mechanism configured to feed fluid into the first area through the first line, and the determiner comprises a position sensor configured to detect a part of the pressurizing mechanism that moves when feeding fluid into the first area as the measurement value corresponding to the volume of the fluid fed into the first area.

4 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the determiner comprises a pressure gauge configured to measure pressure in the first area.

5 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the pressure adjuster comprises a pressurizing mechanism configured to feed fluid into the first area through the first line, and the determiner comprises:
a position sensor configured to detect a part of the pressurizing mechanism that moves when feeding fluid into the first area as the measurement value corresponding to the volume of the fluid fed into the first area, and
a pressure gauge configured to measure pressure in the first area.

6 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein
the determiner determines that
the substrate is not sucked to the elastic film based on a detection result of the position sensor, and
the substrate is sucked to the elastic film based on a measurement result of the pressure gauge.

7 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein
the pressurizing mechanism comprises a cylinder and a weight main body coupled to a piston of the cylinder, and fluid is fed into the first area when the weight main body is moved downward by gravity.

8 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein
the piston is capable of moving up and down in a state where the piston is in contact with an inner surface of the cylinder, the piston divides inside of the cylinder into a lower space and an upper space, and the cylinder is provided with
a first opening provided to the lower space and connected to the first line,
a second opening provided to the lower space,
a third opening provided to the upper space, wherein a piston rod that couples the weight main body and the piston penetrates through the third opening, and
a fourth opening provided to the upper space.

9 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein
when the determination is performed, the second opening is closed and the fourth opening is opened, and after the determination is performed, the second opening is opened and the weight is raised by sucking the upper space from the fourth opening.

10 . The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein
the first line is connected to the first opening of the cylinder and a polishing pressure controller configured to pressurize the first area when polishing the substrate sucked to the elastic film, and a switch that switches whether to cause the first area, through the first line, to communicate with the first opening of the pressurizing mechanism or communicate with the polishing pressure controller is provided.

11 . A substrate polishing apparatus comprising;
the substrate holding apparatus according to claim 1 ; and a polishing table configured to polish the substrate held by the substrate holding apparatus.

Assignees

• Ebara Corp

Inventors

• Nabeya Osamu
• Yamaki Satoru
• Fukushima Makoto

Classifications

• H10P52/402

  of semiconductor materials · CPC title

• H10P90/12

  Preparing bulk and homogeneous wafers · CPC title

• H10P72/0472

  comprising at least one polishing chamber · CPC title

• H10P72/0418

  for etching · CPC title

• H10P72/78 Primary

  using vacuum or suction, e.g. Bernoulli chucks · CPC title