Patent ID: 8652295

Claim:
A chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) apparatus, comprising: a polishing head for holding a wafer, a platen, and a polishing pad on said platen; a first inlet including a first control valve for delivering a first composition when commanded by a process controller during a first time duration onto a surface of said wafer, and a second inlet including a second control valve for delivering a second composition different from said first composition when commanded by said process controller during a second time duration after said first time duration onto said surface of said wafer, said process controller communicably coupled to control said first and said second control valves, and executing a multi-step CMP algorithm that implements a multi-step CMP comprising process including: delivering a first chemical composition onto said surface of said wafer while on said platen for a first time duration, and without removing said wafer from said platen, delivering a second chemical composition different from said first chemical composition onto said surface of said wafer for a second time duration after said first time duration, performing a CMP removal process with contact of said polishing pad to said surface of said wafer using a slurry including said first chemical composition during said first time duration or said second chemical composition during said second time duration, and a non-polishing process without any contact of said polishing pad to said surface of said wafer using the other of said first chemical composition and said second chemical composition during the other of said first and said second time durations, and repeating said multi-step CMP comprising process a plurality of times on said wafer.