阅读说明：本技术 用于原位电磁感应监测系统的芯配置 (Core configuration for in-situ electromagnetic induction monitoring system ) 是由 H·G·伊拉瓦尼 K·徐 D·伊万诺夫 S－H·沈 B·A·斯韦德克 于 2017-10-05 设计创作，主要内容包括：一种用于化学机械抛光的装置包括支撑件和电磁感应监测系统,所述支撑件用于具有抛光表面的抛光垫,所述电磁感应监测系统产生磁场以监测抛光垫正在抛光的基板。电磁感应监测系统包括芯和绕所述芯的一部分卷绕的线圈。芯包括后部、中心柱和环形边缘,所述中心柱在与所述抛光表面正交的第一方向上从所述后部延伸,所述环形边缘平行于所述中心柱地从所述后部延伸并且所述环形边缘围绕所述中心柱且与所述中心柱以一间隙间隔开。所述间隙的宽度小于所述中心柱的宽度,且所述环形边缘的顶表面的表面积比所述中心柱的顶表面的表面积大至少两倍。(An apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing includes a support for a polishing pad having a polishing surface and an electromagnetic induction monitoring system that generates a magnetic field to monitor a substrate being polished by the polishing pad. An electromagnetic induction monitoring system includes a core and a coil wound around a portion of the core. The core includes a rear portion, a central post extending from the rear portion in a first direction orthogonal to the polishing surface, and an annular rim extending from the rear portion parallel to the central post and surrounding the central post and spaced apart from the central post by a gap. The gap has a width less than a width of the center post and a surface area of a top surface of the annular rim is at least two times greater than a surface area of a top surface of the center post.)

1. An apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing, comprising:

a support for a polishing pad having a polishing surface; and an electromagnetic induction monitoring system for generating a magnetic field to monitor a substrate being polished by the polishing pad, the electromagnetic induction monitoring system comprising a core and a coil, the coil wound around a portion of the core, the core comprising a back portion, a central column extending from the back portion in a first direction orthogonal to the polishing surface, and an annular rim extending from the back portion parallel to the central column, and the annular rim surrounding the central column and spaced apart from the central column by a gap, wherein a surface area of a top surface of the annular rim is three to six times greater than a surface area of a top surface of the central column.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the central column has a first width in a second direction parallel to the polishing surface, the annular edge has a second width in the second direction, and the gap has a third width in the second direction, and wherein the third width is less than the first width.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the third width is 50% to 75% of the first width.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the second width is greater than the first width.

5. The device of claim 2, wherein the third width is between about 30% and 70% of the second width.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein a height of the center post is equal to a height of the annular rim.

7. The device of claim 1, wherein the central column is circular and the annular rim is cylindrical.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the coil and core are configured to provide a resonant frequency of 50kHz to 50 MHz.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the coil and core are configured to provide a resonant frequency between about 14 and 16 MHz.

10. An apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing, comprising: a support for a polishing pad having a polishing surface; and an electromagnetic induction monitoring system for generating a magnetic field to monitor a substrate being polished by the polishing pad, the electromagnetic induction monitoring system comprising a core and an annular winding assembly, wherein the core comprises a rear portion, a central post extending from the rear portion in a first direction orthogonal to the polishing surface, and an annular rim extending from the rear portion parallel to the central post and spaced apart from the central post by a gap, and wherein the winding assembly fits in the gap between the central post and the annular rim and comprises a bobbin in contact with an outer surface of the central post and a coil wound around the bobbin.

11. The device of claim 10, wherein the bobbin is plastic.

12. The device of claim 10, wherein the bobbin comprises a cap that rests against a top surface of the central post.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the central column has a first width in a second direction parallel to the polishing surface, the annular edge has a second width in the second direction, the gap has a third width in the second direction, and the winding assembly has a fourth width between the inner diameter and the outer diameter of the cylinder, and wherein the fourth width is at least 80% of the third width.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein an inner surface of the spool provides the inner diameter of the winding assembly.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the winding assembly comprises a band that contacts and surrounds the coil, and an outer surface of the band provides the outer diameter of the winding assembly.

16. The device of claim 15, wherein the outer surface of the band contacts an inner surface of the annular rim.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the coil comprises no more than two wound layers around the bobbin.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the fourth width is at least 90% of the third width.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to electromagnetic induction monitoring, such as eddy current monitoring, during processing of a substrate.

Background

Integrated circuits are typically formed on a substrate (e.g., a semiconductor wafer) by the sequential deposition of conductive, semiconductive, or insulative layers onto a silicon wafer and by the subsequent processing of the layers.

One fabrication step involves depositing a filler layer over a non-planar surface and planarizing the filler layer until the non-planar surface is exposed. For example, a conductive filler layer can be deposited on a patterned insulating layer to fill trenches or holes in the insulating layer. The filler layer is then polished until the raised pattern of the insulating layer is exposed. After planarization, the portions of the conductive layer remaining between the raised patterns of the insulating layer form vias, sockets, and lines that provide conductive paths between thin film circuits on the substrate. In addition, planarization may be used to planarize the substrate surface for photolithography.

Chemical Mechanical Polishing (CMP) is one well-established planarization method. This planarization method typically requires that the substrate be mounted on a carrier head. The exposed surface of the substrate is typically placed against a rotating polishing pad. The carrier head provides a controllable load on the substrate to urge the substrate against the polishing pad. A polishing fluid (e.g., a slurry with abrasive particles) is supplied to the surface of the polishing pad.

During semiconductor processing, it may be important to determine one or more characteristics of a substrate or layer on a substrate. For example, it may be important to know the thickness of the conductive layer during the CMP process so that the process can be terminated at the correct moment. Various methods may be used to determine the substrate characteristics. For example, optical sensors may be used to monitor the substrate in-situ during chemical mechanical polishing. Alternatively (or additionally), an eddy current sensing system may be used to induce eddy currents in conductive regions on a substrate to determine a parameter (such as the local thickness of the conductive region).

Disclosure of Invention

In one aspect, an apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing includes a support for a polishing pad having a polishing surface and an electromagnetic induction monitoring system that generates a magnetic field to monitor a substrate being polished by the polishing pad. An electromagnetic induction monitoring system includes a core and a coil wound around a portion of the core. The core includes a rear portion, a central post extending from the rear portion in a first direction orthogonal to the polishing surface, and an annular rim extending from the rear portion parallel to the central post and surrounding the central post and spaced apart from the central post by a gap. The central column has a first width in a second direction parallel to the polishing surface, the annular edge has a second width in the second direction, and the gap has a third width in the second direction. The third width is less than the first width and a surface area of a top surface of the annular rim is at least two times greater than a surface area of a top surface of the center post.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features.

The second width may be greater than the first width. The second width may be 1.1 to 1.5 times greater than the first width. The third width may be 50% to 75% of the first width. The surface area of the top surface of the annular rim may be at least three times greater than the surface area of the top surface of the center post. The height of the central column may be equal to the height of the annular rim portion. The third width may be between about 30% and 70% of the second width. The coil and core may be configured to provide a resonant frequency of at least 12MHz, for example between about 14 and 16 MHz. The core may be a nickel zinc ferrite.

In another aspect, an apparatus for chemical mechanical polishing includes a support for a polishing pad having a polishing surface and an electromagnetic induction monitoring system that generates a magnetic field to monitor a substrate being polished by the polishing pad. An electromagnetic induction monitoring system includes a core and a winding assembly. The core includes a rear portion, a central post extending from the rear portion in a first direction orthogonal to a surface of the table, and an annular rim extending from the rear portion parallel to the central post and surrounding the central post and spaced apart from the central post by a gap. The center post has a first width in a second direction parallel to the table surface, the annular edge has a second width in the second direction, and the gap has a third width in the second direction. The winding assembly is a cylinder that fits in the gap. The winding assembly includes a coil wound about a center post, and the winding assembly has a fourth width between the inner diameter and the outer diameter of the cylinder. The fourth width is at least 80% of the third width.

Implementations may include one or more of the following features.

The winding assembly may include a bobbin around which the coil may be wound and an inner surface of the bobbin may provide an inner diameter of the winding assembly. The inner surface of the bobbin may contact the outer surface of the central column. The winding assembly may include a band contacting and surrounding the coil, and an outer surface of the band may provide an outer diameter of the winding assembly. The outer surface of the band may contact the inner surface of the annular rim.

The coil may have no more than two winding layers around the center post, e.g., the coil may have a single winding layer around the center post. The fourth width may be at least 90% of the third width. The third width may be about 1 to 2 mm. The third width may be less than the first width, and the surface area of the top surface of the annular rim may be at least two times greater than the surface area of the top surface of the center post.

Certain implementations may include one or more of the following advantages. The spatial resolution of the eddy current sensor can be improved. The eddy current sensor may be configured for monitoring conductive features having high impedance, such as metal sheets, metal residues, or metal wires formed from low conductive metals, such as titanium or cobalt.

The details of one or more implementations are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other aspects, features, and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

Brief description of the drawings

Figure 1 is a schematic side view, partial cross-sectional view, of a chemical mechanical polishing station including an electromagnetic induction monitoring system.

Fig. 2 is a schematic top view of the chemical mechanical polishing station of fig. 1.

Fig. 3A to 3C are schematic cross-sectional side views illustrating a method of polishing a substrate.

Fig. 4 is a schematic circuit diagram of a drive system for an electromagnetic induction monitoring system.

Fig. 5A and 5B are schematic top and side views of a core of an electromagnetic induction monitoring system.

Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

Detailed Description

The CMP system may use an eddy current monitoring system to detect the thickness of a metal layer on a substrate during polishing. During polishing of the metal layer, the eddy current monitoring system can determine the thickness of the metal layer in different regions of the substrate. The thickness measurement can be used to detect a polishing endpoint or to adjust process parameters of the polishing process in real time to reduce polishing non-uniformity.

One problem with eddy current monitoring is that eddy currents are induced in a conductive layer in an area (the size of which depends on the diffusion of the magnetic field); the greater the spread of the magnetic field, the lower the resolution of the eddy current monitoring system. With the ever-increasing demand for integrated circuit manufacturing, there is also a need for increased spatial resolution of eddy current sensors, for example to provide improved control over polishing parameters. Proper selection of the physical configuration of the magnetic core can reduce the spread of the magnetic field and improve resolution.

Fig. 1 and 2 show an example of a polishing station 20 of a chemical mechanical polishing apparatus. The polishing station 20 includes a rotatable disk-shaped platen 24, and a polishing pad 30 is positioned on the platen 24. The table 24 is operable to rotate about an axis 25. For example, motor 22 may rotate drive shaft 28 to rotate table 24. The polishing pad 30 can be a dual layer polishing pad having an outer polishing layer 34 and a softer backing layer 32.

Polishing station 22 may include a supply port or a combined supply rinse arm 39 to dispense polishing liquid 38 (such as slurry) onto polishing pad 30. Polishing station 22 may include a pad conditioner device having a conditioning disk to maintain the surface roughness of the polishing pad.

Carrier head 70 is operable to hold substrate 10 against polishing pad 30. The carrier head 70 is suspended from a support structure 72 (e.g., a carousel or track) and is connected to a carrier head rotation motor 76 by a drive shaft 74 so that the carrier head can rotate about the shaft 71. Alternatively, the carrier head 70 may oscillate laterally, such as on a slider on a carousel or track 72; or by rotational oscillation of the carousel itself.

In operation, the platen rotates about its central axis 25 and the carrier head is rotated about its central axis 71 and translated laterally across the top surface of the polishing pad 30. In the case where there are multiple carrier heads, each carrier head 70 may independently control its polishing parameters, e.g., each carrier head may independently control the pressure applied to each respective substrate.

The carrier head 70 may include a flexible membrane 80, the flexible membrane 80 having a substrate mounting surface for contacting the backside of the substrate 10 and a plurality of pressurizable chambers 82, and the plurality of pressurizable chambers 82 applying different pressures to different regions (e.g., different radial regions) on the substrate 10. The carrier head may also include a retaining ring 84 to retain the substrate.

Grooves 26 are formed in platen 24 and, optionally, thin portions 36 may be formed in polishing pad 30 above grooves 26. The groove 26 and the thin pad portion 36 may be positioned such that the groove 26 and the thin pad portion 36 pass under the substrate 10 during a portion of the stage rotation regardless of the translational position of the carrier head. Assuming that the polishing pad 30 is a dual layer pad, the thin pad portion 36 may be constructed by removing a portion of the backing layer 32 and optionally by forming a groove in the bottom of the polishing layer 34. For example, the thin portion may optionally be light transmissive if the in situ optical monitoring system is integrated into the work table 24.

Referring to fig. 3A, the polishing system 20 can be used to polish a substrate 10, the substrate 10 comprising a conductive material overlying and/or embedded in a patterned dielectric layer. For example, the substrate 10 may include a layer of conductive material 16 (e.g., a metal such as copper, aluminum, cobalt, or titanium), the layer of conductive material 16 covering and filling trenches in the dielectric layer 14 (e.g., silicon oxide or a high-k dielectric). Optionally, a barrier layer 18 (e.g., tantalum or tantalum nitride) may line the trenches and separate the conductive material 16 from the dielectric layer 14. The conductive material 16 in the trenches may provide vias, pads, and/or interconnects in the completed integrated circuit. Although the dielectric layer 14 is shown as being deposited directly on the semiconductor wafer 12, one or more other layers may be interposed between the dielectric layer 14 and the wafer 12.

First, the conductive material 16 covers the entire dielectric layer 14. As the polishing proceeds, the bulk of the conductive material 16 is removed, exposing the barrier layer 18 (see fig. 3B). Polishing is continued and then the patterned top surface of the dielectric layer 14 is exposed (see fig. 3C). Additional polishing may then be used to control the depth of the trench containing the conductive material 16.

Returning to fig. 1, the polishing system 20 includes an in-situ electromagnetic induction monitoring system 100, and the in-situ electromagnetic induction monitoring system 100 can be coupled to the controller 90 or considered to comprise the controller 90. Rotary coupler 29 may be used to electrically connect components within rotatable table 24 (e.g., sensors of an in situ monitoring system) to components external to the table (e.g., drive and sense circuitry or controller 90).

The in-situ electromagnetic induction monitoring system 100 is configured to generate a signal according to the depth of the conductive material 16 (e.g., metal). Electromagnetic induction monitoring systems may operate by generating eddy currents in a conductive material (which may be a sheet of conductive material overlying a dielectric layer or may be conductive material left in a trench after exposure of the dielectric layer) or by generating electrical currents in conductive loops formed in trenches in a dielectric layer on a substrate.

In operation, the polishing system 20 can use the in-situ monitoring system 100 to determine when the conductive layer reaches a target thickness (e.g., a target depth for the metal in the trench or a three-dimensional target thickness for a metal layer overlying the dielectric layer) and then stop polishing. Alternatively or additionally, the polishing system 20 can use the in-situ monitoring system 100 to determine thickness differences across the conductive material 16 on the substrate 10 and use this information to adjust the pressure in one or more chambers 82 in the carrier head 80 during polishing to reduce polishing non-uniformities.

In-situ monitoring system 100 may include a sensor 102 mounted in recess 26 in table 24. Sensor 102 may include a magnetic core 104 positioned at least partially in recess 26 and at least one coil 106 wound around a portion of core 104. The drive and sense circuitry 108 is electrically connected to the coil 106. The drive and sense circuitry 108 generates signals that may be sent to the controller 90. Although shown as being external to table 24, some or all of drive and sense circuitry 108 may be mounted in table 24.

Referring to fig. 2, as the table 24 rotates, the sensor 102 scans under the substrate 10 (sweep). By sampling the signal from the circuit 108 at a particular frequency, the circuit 108 generates measurements at a series of sampling regions across the substrate 10. For each scan, measurements at one or more of the sampling regions 94 may be selected or combined. Thus, in multiple scans, the selected or combined measurements provide a time-varying sequence of values.

The polishing station 20 may also include a position sensor 96 (such as an optical interrupter) to sense when the sensor 102 is below the substrate 10 and when the sensor 102 is off the substrate. For example, the position sensor 96 may be mounted in a fixed position relative to the carrier head 70. A flag 98 may be attached to the periphery of table 24. The attachment point and length of the flag 98 are selected so that the flag 98 can signal the position sensor 96 when the sensor 102 scans under the substrate 10.

Alternatively or additionally, the polishing station 20 may include an encoder to determine the angular position of the table 24.

Returning to FIG. 1, a controller 90 (e.g., a general purpose programmable digital computer) receives signals from the in situ monitoring system 100. Because the sensor 102 scans under the substrate 10 with each rotation of the stage 24, information of the depth of the conductive layer (e.g., bulk layer (or conductive material) in the trench) is accumulated in-situ (once per stage rotation). When the substrate 10 substantially covers the sensor 102, the controller 90 may be programmed to sample measurements from the in-situ monitoring system 100.

Further, the controller 90 may be programmed to calculate a radial position for each measurement and to classify the measurements as radial ranges.

Fig. 4 shows an example of the drive and sense circuit 108. The circuit 108 applies an AC current to the coil 106, and the coil 106 generates a magnetic field 150 between two poles 152a and 152b of the core 104. In operation, a portion of the magnetic field 50 extends into the substrate 10 when the substrate 10 intermittently overlies the sensor 104.

The circuit 108 may include a capacitor 160 connected in parallel with the coil 46. The coil 106 and the capacitor 160 together may form an LC resonance tank. In operation, current generator 162 (e.g., an edge oscillator circuit based current generator) drives the system at the resonant frequency of the LC tank circuit formed by coil 106 (having inductance L) and capacitor 60 (having capacitance C). The current generator 162 may be designed to maintain the peak-to-peak amplitude of the sinusoidal oscillations at a constant value. A time dependent voltage having an amplitude V0 is rectified using rectifier 164 and a time dependent voltage having an amplitude V0 is provided to feedback circuit 166. The feedback circuit 166 determines the drive current for the current generator 162 to keep the amplitude of the voltage V0 constant. Edge oscillator circuits and feedback circuits are further described in U.S. patent nos. 4,000,458 and 7,112,960.

As an eddy current monitoring system, the electromagnetic induction monitoring system 100 may be used to monitor the thickness of a conductive layer by inducing eddy currents in the conductive layer, or to monitor the depth of the conductive material in a trench by inducing eddy currents in the conductive material. Alternatively, as an inductive monitoring system, an electromagnetic inductive monitoring system may be operated for monitoring purposes by inductively generating a current in a conductive ring formed in the dielectric layer 14 of the substrate 10, as described in U.S. patent publication 2015-0371907.

If it is desired to monitor the thickness of a conductive layer on a substrate, when the magnetic field 150 reaches the conductive layer, the magnetic field 150 can pass and generate a current (if the target is a ring) or an eddy current (if the target is a sheet). This creates an effective impedance that increases the drive current required for the current generator 162 to maintain the amplitude of the voltage V0 constant. The magnitude of the effective impedance depends on the thickness of the conductive layer. Thus, the drive current generated by the current generator 162 provides a measurement of the thickness of the conductive layer being polished.

Other configurations of the drive and sense circuitry 148 are possible. For example, separate drive and sense coils may be wound around the core, the drive coil may be driven at a constant frequency, and the amplitude or phase of the current from the sense coil (relative to the amplitude or phase of the drive oscillator) may be used for the signal.

Fig. 5A and 5B illustrate an example of a core 104 for use in the in situ monitoring system 100. The core 104 has a body formed of a non-conductive material having a relatively high magnetic permeability (e.g., μ of about 2500 or greater). Specifically, the core 104 may be a nickel zinc ferrite or a magnesium zinc ferrite.

In some implementations, the core 104 is coated with a protective layer. For example, the core 104 may be coated with a material such as parylene to prevent water from entering the holes in the core 104 and to prevent the coils from shorting.

The core 104 may be a round core, also known as a pot core. The core includes a rear portion 120, a center post 122, and an annular rim 124, the center post 122 extending from the rear portion 120, the annular rim 124 surrounding the center post 122 and spaced apart from the center post 122 by a gap 126, and the annular rim 124 also extending from the rear portion 120. Annular edge 124 may be spaced a uniform distance from central post 122 about the periphery of central post 122. Annular rim 124 may completely surround center post 122 (as viewed from the top of fig. 5B).

The take-up assembly 130 fits in the gap 126. The winding assembly may be a cylinder. The winding assembly has a width (W4), which may be the distance between the inner and outer diameters of the cylinder (W4).

Winding assembly 130 includes at least coil 106, with coil 106 being wound about center post 122 of core 104, such as only about center post 122. To reduce the required width of the gap 126, the coil 106 may have only one or two layers of windings.

The winding assembly 130 may also include a spool 132. Bobbin 132 fits around center post 122 and coil 106 is wound around bobbin 132. Bobbin 132 may also include a cap (cap)136, cap 136 resting against the top surface of post 124 to set the vertical position of the coil portion. This allows for easier assembly of the sensor 102. The bobbin may be a dielectric material, such as plastic. The inner surface of the spool 132 may provide the outer diameter of the winding assembly.

The winding assembly 130 may also include a band 134 that covers the outer surface of the coil 106, for example, to protect the coil 106. The outer surface of the band 134 may provide the inner diameter of the winding assembly.

The back portion 120 of the core 106 may be a generally planar body and may have a top surface that is parallel to the top surface of the platen, e.g., parallel to the substrate and polishing pad during polishing operations. The rear portion 120 may have a height (H) measured orthogonal to the table top surface. A central column 122 and an annular rim 124 extend from the posterior portion 120 in a direction orthogonal to the top surface of the posterior portion 120 and the central column 122 and the annular rim 124 extend parallel to each other. The center post 122 and the annular rim 124 may have the same height.

In some implementations, the core 104 is generally circular. For example, the rear portion 120 may be disc-shaped, the center post 122 may be circular, and the annular rim 124 may similarly be annular. However, other configurations of the annular structure of retaining edge 124 are possible, for example center post 122 may be square and edge 124 may similarly run along the perimeter of a (trace) square.

Center column 122 has a width (W1) and annular edge 124 has a width (W2), each of width (W1) and width (W2) may be measured in a direction parallel to the table top surface (e.g., parallel to the face of the substrate and polishing pad during a polishing operation), and center column 122 and annular edge 124 are substantially linear and extend parallel to each other. The width W1 of center post 122 may be as substantially minimal as possible while providing the necessary magnetic flux for a clear signal.

Annular edge 124 is spaced apart from center post 122 by a gap having a width (W3). The width of gap 126 may be as substantially minimal as possible while providing space for take-up assembly 130 to fit within gap 126. For example, the width of the wrap (W4) may be at least 80%, such as about 90%, of the width of the gap 126. This maintains the magnetic field in a region near center post 122 and increases spatial resolution. In some implementations, the outer surface of the winding assembly 130 contacts the inner surface of the annular rim 124.

Widths W1, W2, and W3 may be selected such that the surface area of annular edge 124 is greater than the surface area of center post 122, e.g., at least two times greater, e.g., at least three times greater, e.g., at least four times greater. This allows more flux lines to be collected and pushed towards the inner diameter of annular rim 124, further improving spatial resolution.

For a center post having a larger width (e.g., where W1 is 3mm or greater), the surface area of annular edge 124 may be at least two times, e.g., two to three times, larger than the surface area of center post 122. For this case, the width W3 may be up to 1 mm. For a center post having a larger width (e.g., where W1 is less than 3mm), the surface area of annular edge 124 may be at least four times, e.g., four to six times, larger than the surface area of center post 122. For this case, the width W3 may be up to 2 mm.

Annular edge 124 may have a width W2, which width W2 is greater than half (e.g., greater than a radius) of width W1 of center post 122. In some implementations, annular edge 124 has a width W2, which width W2 is greater than width W1 of center post 122 (e.g., greater than the diameter), e.g., at least 10% greater. For example, central column 122 may have a width of 1.5mm, gap 126 may have a width of about 1mm, and annular edge 124 may have a width of about 1.75 mm.

The central post 122 and the annular rim 124 have a height Hp, which is the distance the central post 122 and the annular rim 124 extend from the rear 120 of the core 104. The height Hp may be greater than the widths W1 and W2. In some implementations, the height Hp is the same as the distance W3 separating the ray traces (prog) 504 a-c.

Typically, in situ eddy current monitoring systems are constructed with a resonant frequency of about 50kHz to 50 MHz. For example, for the eddy current monitoring systems shown in fig. 4 and 5A, coil 106 may have an inductance of about 0.1 to 50 microhenries (microH), e.g., 0.75uH, and capacitor 160 may have a capacitance of about 40pF to about 0.022uF, e.g., 150 pF.

The electromagnetic induction monitoring system can be used in a variety of polishing systems. Either the polishing pad or the carrier head, or both, can be moved to provide relative motion between the polishing surface and the substrate. The polishing pad can be a circular (or some other shape) pad affixed to the platen, can be a strip extending between a supply roll and a take-up roll, or can be a continuous strip. The polishing pad can be affixed to the platen, can be incrementally advanced over the platen between polishing operations, or can be continuously driven over the platen during polishing. The pad may be affixed to the platen during polishing, or a fluid bearing may be present between the platen and the polishing pad during polishing. The polishing pad can be a standard (e.g., polyurethane with or without fillers) rough pad, soft pad, or fixed abrasive pad.

Additionally, although the above description has focused on polishing, the core design may be suitable for in-situ monitoring during other substrate processing tools and steps that change the thickness of a layer on a substrate (e.g., etching or deposition) or may be suitable for in-line or stand-alone system measurements.

The present invention has been described in terms of several embodiments. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims.