A method and apparatus are described for detecting an endpoint of a film removal process in which a target film overlying a stopping film is removed. A chemical reaction product is generated from at least one of the target film and the stopping film; this chemical reaction product is converted to a separate product. The separate product is exposed to ionizing radiation. The ionization current generated by the radiation is monitored as the target film is removed. A change in the ionization curren...

In a chemical mechanical planarization assembly directed for the removal of oxide layers, which stop on films containing silicon nitride, a conventional polishing table is provided with a gas extraction unit which transmits a gas sample to an infrared spectrometer. The presence of ammonia in the slurry, which is generated when a stop layer containing silicon nitride is abraded under high pH conditions, can be detected using infrared spectroscopy and accordingly provides for an in situ endpoint d...

Determination of an endpoint for removing a film from a wafer, by determining a first reference point removal time indicating when a breakthrough of the film has occurred, determining a second reference point removal time indicating when the film has been polished almost to completion, determining an additional removal time indicating an overpolishing interval, and adding the second reference point removal time with the additional removal time to get a total removal time to the endpoint.

A method is provided to optimize the chemical mechanical planarization process of wafers having a target removal layer and a stop layer. A slurry is added to a polishing table which includes a polishing pad and a platen adapted for rotation; a portion of the slurry is allowed to engage an interface between the polishing pad and the wafer. A gaseous sample is continuously extracted from the slurry; the gaseous sample includes a reactant product created when the polishing pad engages the stop laye...

Provided is circuitry for biasing a transistor amplifier with a DC-voltage signal, the transistor amplifier having a first input terminal, a second input terminal, and an output terminal coupled to the second input terminal. The circuitry includes a sensor capacitor connected to the first input terminal and an impedance transistor arranged in parallel with said capacitor, the transistor and capacitor forming a low-pass filter. The circuitry also includes a biasing circuit configured to controlla...

Detection of the endpoint for removal of a target film overlying a stopping film by removing the target film with a process that selectively generates a chemical reaction product (for example ammonia when polishing a wafer with a nitride film in a slurry containing KOH) with one of the stopping film and the target film, converting the chemical reaction product to a separate product, producing excited molecules from the separate product, and monitoring the level of light emitted from the excited ...

Detection of the endpoint for removal of a target film overlying a stopping film by removing the target film with a process that selectively generates a chemical reaction product (for example ammonia when polishing a wafer with a nitride film in a slurry containing KOH) with one of the stopping film and the target film, converting the chemical reaction product to a separate product, and monitoring the level of the separate product as the target film is removed.

A method is described for fabricating a cloisonne structure, in which a top surface of a metal oxide layer is made coplanar with a top surface of a metallic structure formed on a substrate. A nitride layer is deposited on at least the top surface of the metallic structure, and the metal oxide layer is deposited over the metallic structure and the nitride layer. The metal oxide layer is then polished by a chemical-mechanical polishing (CMP) process using a slurry, to expose the nitride layer on t...

Detection of the endpoint for removal of a target film overlying a stopping film by removing the target film with a process that selectively generates a chemical reaction product (for example ammonia when polishing a wafer with a nitride film in a slurry containing KOH) with either the target or stopping film, and monitoring the level of chemical reaction product by threshold photoionization mass spectroscopy as the target film is removed.

A method for detecting the endpoint for removal of a target film overlying a stopping film by chemical-mechanical polishing using a slurry, by removing the target film with a polishing process that generates a chemical reaction product (for example ammonia when polishing a wafer with a nitride film in a slurry containing KOH) in the slurry, adding to the slurry a reagent which produces a characteristic result upon reacting with the chemical reaction product, and monitoring the slurry for the cha...