Insight on Surface Changes Post Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) of the Silicon Substrate by Adding Polyoxyethylene Ether

Abstract

In this study, fatty alcohol polyoxyethylene ether (AEO-9) and isomeric decyl polyoxyethylene ether (XP-70, XP-90) are tested as additives to slurries, aiming to improve the surface quality during Si fine chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) in 14 nm ultra-large-scale integration. Large particle count, contact angle and polishing data reveal that, XP-90 exhibits improved dispersibility and hydrophilicity, reducing the roughness and defects. Various analytical results on silicon surfaces including X-ray photoelectron spectrometry, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, and scanning electron microscopy data shed new light on the mechanism of the effects of polyoxyethylene ether on silicon CMP. And the surface roughness of Si is also optimized.