Groove cleaning device for chemical-mechanical polishing

摘要

An improved chemical-mechanical polishing method and apparatus is provided. A brush is employed to continually brush slurry particles from surface features, e.g., grooves, on a polishing pad. In this manner slurry is prevented from becoming compacted within the grooves as the slurry passes beneath and is subjected to compressive forces of a wafer polishing head. The invention may be practiced by use of a stationary brush operatively coupled to the polishing pad surface, or by an improved conditioning assembly having both a diamond surface for conditioning the polishing pad and a brush for cleaning the pad's surface features. The brush portion of the conditioning assembly may or may not rotate as it is scanned across the surface of the polishing pad.