In-line thickness measurement of a dielectric film layer on a surface of a workpiece subsequent to a polishing on a chemical- mechanical polishing machine in a polishing slurry is disclosed. The workpiece includes a given level of back-end-of-line (BEOL) structure including junctions. The measurement apparatus includes a platen and an electrode embedded within the platen. A positioning mechanism positions the workpiece above the electrode with the dielectric layer facing in a direction of the electrode. A slurry dam is used for maintaining a prescribed level of a conductive polishing slurry above the electrode, the prescribed level to ensure a desired slurry coverage of the workpiece. A capacitance sensor senses a system capacitance C in accordance with an RC equivalent circuit model, wherein the RC equivalent circuit includes a resistance R representative of the slurry and workpiece resistances and the system capacitance C representative of the dielectric material and junction capacitances. Lastly, a capacitance- to-thickness converter converts the sensed capacitance to a dielectric thickness in accordance with a prescribed system capacitance/optical thickness calibration, wherein the prescribed calibration corresponds to the given level of BEOL structure of the workpiece.
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