ABSTRACT
Wear is one of the most important parameters in evaluating the CMP process. Wear in CMP is evaluated as the material removal rate (MRR). The primary wear mechanisms that occur in CMP are adhesive wear, abrasive wear, electrochemical wear, tribochemical wear, and fatigue wear on both wafer and pad surfaces. In this chapter, we will first introduce basic wear concepts. We will then discuss wear in polishing and in conditioning. Throughout the text, we show examples of CMP failure due to wear.
