Key Takeaways & Executive Findings
- •• Silica abrasives dominate the CMP market (>90%) and operate via a chemical-mechanical synergistic mechanism essential for sub-7 nm IC manufacturing. • Innovations in particle structure (mesoporous, hollow, raspberry) and surface modifications significantly improve dispersion, reduce defects, and enhance material removal rate. • State-of-the-art silica slurries achieve surface roughness below 0.1 nm RMS, meeting stringent requirements for advanced nodes. • Future development focuses on biodegradable and smart abrasives to align with green manufacturing and simplify post-CMP cleaning.
Abstract
Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) serves as an indispensable process for achieving global planarization in semiconductor manufacturing, especially as integrated circuit (IC) technology advances to sub-7 nm nodes, where atomic-level surface flatness becomes crucial. Silica abrasives, which account for over 90% of the abrasive market in advanced CMP processes, operate not through simple mechanical grinding but through a key "chemical-mechanical synergistic" mechanism: chemically softening the wafer surface, then mechanically removing the softened layer to expose a new surface, which is further softened and removed, repeating this cycle to produce a smooth wafer. Despite their prevalence, conventional silica abrasives still face challenges, including relatively low material removal rate (MRR), a tendency to agglomerate, leading to poor dispersion and surface defects, and limitations in achieving ultimate surface uniformity. Significant progress has been made to address these issues. Development has progressed from simple spherical particles to complex structural designs (such as mesoporous, hollow, and raspberry-shaped structures) to enhance slurry transport and mechanical action. Surface chemical modifications (e.g., using amino or polymer groups) can improve dispersion stability and reduce scratching. Furthermore, composites with other materials (e.g., ceria, polymers) and precise control of particle size distribution are key to enhancing performance. These innovative approaches have yielded significant performance gains. State-of-the-art slurries have demonstrated the ability to achieve surface roughness below 0.1 nm RMS. The development of silica abrasives is increasingly focused on sustainability and smart manufacturing. A prominent direction is the design of biodegradable abrasives that disintegrate after use, thereby simplifying post-chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) cleanup and minimizing environmental impact—an approach fully aligned with green manufacturing principles. This review systematically summarizes the progress of silica abrasives for CMP over the past 60 years. This summary provides theoretical insights and forward-looking strategies to overcome the current limitations of abrasive technology. We believe this review will be helpful in advancing the field of CMP abrasives.
1. Introduction
Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is a critical process in semiconductor manufacturing, enabling the global planarization of wafers required for the fabrication of integrated circuits (ICs). As IC technology advances to sub-7 nm nodes, the demand for atomic-level surface flatness has intensified, making CMP indispensable. Among the various abrasive materials used in CMP, silica (SiO2) abrasives have emerged as the dominant choice, accounting for over 90% of the abrasive market in advanced CMP processes. Their popularity stems from their unique "chemical-mechanical synergistic" mechanism, where the abrasive chemically softens the wafer surface, and the mechanical action removes the softened layer, repeating this cycle to achieve a smooth surface.
Despite their widespread use, conventional silica abrasives face several challenges, including relatively low material removal rates (MRR), a tendency to agglomerate leading to poor dispersion and surface defects, and limitations in achieving ultimate surface uniformity. Over the past six decades, significant research efforts have been devoted to overcoming these issues. This has led to the development of advanced silica abrasives with tailored structures, such as mesoporous, hollow, and raspberry-shaped particles, as well as surface modifications and composite formulations. These innovations have resulted in substantial performance improvements, with state-of-the-art slurries achieving surface roughness below 0.1 nm RMS.
Looking forward, the development of silica abrasives is increasingly focused on sustainability and smart manufacturing. A prominent direction is the design of biodegradable abrasives that disintegrate after use, thereby simplifying post-CMP cleanup and minimizing environmental impact—an approach fully aligned with green manufacturing principles. This review systematically summarizes the progress of silica abrasives for CMP over the past 60 years, providing theoretical insights and forward-looking strategies to overcome current limitations and advance the field.
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WU Zuozuo, CHENG Jinglin, YU Zhiguo, ZHOU Wei, LI Yangjian, CAO Jianwei, SUN Wei, YUAN Shuai, YANG Deren (2025). Challenges, development and future of silica abrasives in chemical mechanical polishing derived from past six decades. SinoTechIntel Verified Research. https://doi.org/10.1088/1674-4926/25060003
Research & Educational Purpose Only:The translations, structured abstracts, analytical annotations, and data reports provided by SinoTechIntel are intended exclusively for academic research, internal corporate R&D, and educational benchmarking. They do not constitute formal engineering, chemical safety, legal, or professional advice.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the role of silica abrasives in chemical mechanical polishing (CMP)?
Silica abrasives are the most widely used abrasives in CMP, accounting for over 90% of the market. They operate via a chemical-mechanical synergistic mechanism, where they chemically soften the wafer surface and mechanically remove the softened layer, enabling global planarization essential for advanced IC manufacturing.
What are the main challenges associated with conventional silica abrasives?
Conventional silica abrasives face challenges such as relatively low material removal rate (MRR), agglomeration leading to poor dispersion and surface defects, and limitations in achieving ultimate surface uniformity.
How have silica abrasives evolved to overcome these challenges?
Silica abrasives have evolved from simple spherical particles to complex structures like mesoporous, hollow, and raspberry-shaped designs. Surface chemical modifications and composites with other materials have been developed to improve dispersion stability, reduce scratching, and enhance material removal rate.
What performance levels have state-of-the-art silica slurries achieved?
State-of-the-art silica slurries have demonstrated the ability to achieve surface roughness below 0.1 nm RMS, meeting the stringent requirements for sub-7 nm technology nodes.
What is the future direction for silica abrasive development?
The future development focuses on sustainability and smart manufacturing, particularly the design of biodegradable abrasives that disintegrate after use, simplifying post-CMP cleanup and minimizing environmental impact.
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