Real-time prediction of material removal rate for advanced process control of chemical mechanical polishing

Polishing torque holds significance in monitoring the chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process due to its close correlation with material removal. This study introduces a new model-based technique for estimating the material removal rate (MRR) using in-process data from CMP machines. The proposed method employs either the sequential least squares method or Kalman filter for real-time state estimation. Real-time estimation of MRR enables material removal control without relying on conventional endpoint detection (EDP) technologies. The accuracy of the proposed approach is validated through oxide CMP experiments, demonstrating precise estimation of the center-slowed MRR profile towards the end of the pad life.