[labnetwork] Post-CMP cleaning tools & workflows – looking for recommendations / user experience

[James Grant]

Dear Labnetwork colleagues,

I’m looking for some advice on post-CMP wafer cleaning and would be very grateful for any experience you’re willing to share
.
At the James Watt Nanofabrication Centre (University of Glasgow) we are in the process of procuring a 200 mm CMP tool as part of a regional investment programme. The key processes we need to support are:


  *   Cu RDL CMP, and
  *   Polymer (PI/PBO) via-reveal CMP.

At present, we do not have a dedicated post-CMP cleaner or SRD, so we’re trying to understand what is realistically required to achieve good, repeatable results and avoid contamination issues.

I’d be very interested to hear:

  1.  What tools you use for post-CMP cleaning
     *   Dedicated post-CMP cleaner (make/model?)
     *   General-purpose wet bench + SRD
     *   Other approaches (e.g. IPA dryer, manual brush cleaning, etc.)
  2.  Your experience with Cu and polymer CMP specifically
     *   How critical has a dedicated cleaner been in practice?
     *   Any particular challenges with particle removal, Cu contamination, or polymer residue?
  3.  Chemistries and sequences that have worked well
     *   For Cu CMP (e.g. citric/chelator cleans, surfactants)
     *   For polymer CMP (Polyimide/PBO)
  4.  If you started without a post-CMP cleaner, did you later add one?
     *   What drove that decision and which tool did you choose?

Budget is a constraint for us at the moment, so I’m especially interested in “minimum viable” but robust solutions, as well as any lessons learned from upgrading to more advanced cleaning tools later.

Happy to summarise responses back to the list if that would be useful to others.

Many thanks in advance for any insights,

Best wishes,
James
Dr. James Paul Grant
JWNC Head of Engineering and Process
Engineering and Process Team
james.grant at glasgow.ac.uk<mailto:james.grant at glasgow.ac.uk>
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