Polymer coated -aminopropyltriethoxysilane-modified -alumina non-spherical nanocomposite abrasives and their chemical mechanical polishing behavior on glass-ceramic substrate

This study aimed to overcome limitations associated with the use of alumina nanoparticles in the semiconductor manufacturing industry, including high hardness, inadequate dispersion, and substandard post-polishing surface quality. Novel nanocomposite abrasives, alpha-alumina-g-polyacrylamide (alpha-Al2O3-g-PAM) and alpha-alumina-g-epoxy (alpha-Al2O3-g-EP), were developed using surface activation and graft polymerization techniques. The resulting abrasives were characterized using FTIR, EDS, and SEM techniques. The chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) performance of these nanocomposite abrasives on glass-ceramic substrates was evaluated. The results showed excellent dispersibility of the nanocomposite abrasives in an aqueous medium. When compared to pure alpha-alumina abrasives, the slurry incorporating these nanocomposites exhibited higher material removal rates, improved surface roughness, and reduced surface defects. Notably, alpha-Al2O3-g-PAM achieved a remarkable material removal rate of 57.28 nm/min during rough polishing, and alpha-Al2O3-g-EP achieved the lowest surface roughness value of 1.38 nm after fine polishing. The use of long-chain polymers with alpha-Al2O3 abrasives enhanced effective contact during the CMP process, resulting in improved mechanical grinding and chemical action, and notable improvements in CMP properties. This study offers valuable insight into creating groundbreaking nanocomposite abrasives with outstanding CMP performance and could be a promising candidate for advanced CMP applications. [GRAPHICS]