Patent ID: 7241205

Claim:
A method of processing a substrate, comprising: preparing a rotatable polishing mechanism with a rotatable cylindrical polishing head and a polishing tape supply and winding device, the polishing tape supply and winding device being movable with the polishing head and having a polishing tape supply unit and a polishing tape winding unit, and a polishing tape supplied from the polishing tape supply unit being spirally wound on the polishing head; placing the polishing head in a notch formed in a circumferential portion of a substrate to be processed; and rotating the polishing head while contacting and pressing the polishing head on a sidewall surface of the notch to polish the sidewall surface of the notch, wherein during the polishing by the polishing tape, an unused tape portion of the polishing tape is supplied from the polishing tape supply unit to the polishing head and wound on the polishing head and, concurrently, a used tape portion of the polishing tape wound on the polishing head is removed from the polishing head by the polishing tape winding unit, so that unused tape portions of the polishing tape are supplied during the polishing without moving the polishing head up or down.