In-situ/self-propelled polishing pad conditioner and cleaner
US6179693A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Oct 6, 1998 |
| Grant date | Jan 30, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Oct 6, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB24B53/12
- WIPO fieldMachine tools
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A non-motorized polishing pad conditioner and cleaner having a free-wheeling conditioner head with a plurality of channels to direct the flow of a cleansing fluid; a hollow shaft connected to a fluid source; and a conditioning pad to facilitate loosening the debris found on a polishing pad wherein the pad conditioner and cleaner is self-propelled upon contact with a rotating polishing pad. A cantilever may be used to attach the conditioner and cleaner adjacent to the polishing apparatus. The cantilever may contain a motorized element for extending and retracting the conditioner and cleaner over the radius of a polishing pad such that the entire surface of the polishing pad may be conditioned and cleaned. A method of conditioning and cleaning a polishing pad while simultaneously polishing a silicon wafer is also described.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.