Appeal No. 1999-2115
Application No. 08/724,574
14), and an integrated circuit chip (claims 15-20). In
particular, the scratches formed during a chemical mechanical
polish (CMP) process are removed by heating the dielectric layer
to a temperature high enough to cause the dielectric layer to
reflow, thereby filling in the scratches and providing a smooth,
planar surface for subsequent processing steps. (Appeal brief,
page 2.) Further details of this appealed subject matter are
recited in illustrative claims 1 and 9, the sole independent
claims on appeal:
1. A method for removing scratches from a
dielectric layer comprising the steps of:
providing a layer of a reflowable dielectric
material;
subjecting the layer to a chemical mechanical
polish; and
removing scratches formed during the chemical
mechanical polish by heating the layer of the
reflowable dielectric material to a temperature
sufficient to cause the reflowable dielectric material
to reflow.
9. A method for manufacturing an integrated
circuit chip comprising the steps of:
providing a substrate;
depositing a layer of a reflowable dielectric
material on a surface of the substrate;
defining a pattern in the layer of the reflowable
dielectric material, thereby forming a patterned
substrate;
non-selectively depositing a conductive layer
over a surface of the patterned substrate;
chemical mechanical polishing the conductive
layer to the surface of the patterned substrate; and
2
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