POLYMERIC POLISHING PAD CONTAINING HOLLOW POLYMERICMICROELEMENTS

摘要

The present invention relates to an article of manufacture or polishing pad (10) for altering a surface of a workpiece, such as polishing or planarizing a semiconductor device. The article includes a polymeric matrix (14) impregnated with a plurality of polymeric microelements (16), each polymeric microelement having a void space (22) therein. The article has a work surface (18) and a subsurface proximate to the work surface. When the article is in contact with a working environment, polymeric microelements (16) at the work surface of the article are less rigid than polymeric elements embedded in the surface. As the work surface of the article is abraded during use, the work surface of the pad may be continuously regenerated. In alternative preferred embodiments, the work surface may further include a minitexture and/or a macrotexture.