Patent ID: 8771038

Claim:
A polishing apparatus, comprising: a stage configured to hold a substrate; a stage-rotating mechanism configured to rotate said stage; a polishing head configured to polish a periphery of the substrate held by said stage; a controller configured to control operations of said stage, said stage-rotating mechanism, and said polishing head; an image-capturing device configured to capture an image of the periphery of the substrate through at least one terminal imaging element arranged so as to face the periphery of the substrate; an image processor configured to process the image captured by said image-capturing device; and a contact head configured to bring a transparent tape into contact with the periphery of the substrate, the transparent tape being arranged between the periphery of the substrate and said terminal imaging element and having a light-transmissive property, wherein said terminal imaging element is arranged so as to face a portion of the transparent tape where highest contact pressure is applied to the periphery of the substrate.