Study on the influence of polishing pad characteristics on the surface quality and material removal rate of FV520B steel in chemical mechanical polishing

Abstract In the domain of chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), the polishing pad assumes a pivotal function. The pad’s characteristics, such as hardness, porosity, wear resistance, and surface morphology, exert a substantial influence on the efficacy of the polishing process. At present, there are no reports on the investigations related to the CMP of FV520B steel with different polishing pads. The experimental findings demonstrate that under the study’s specific conditions, the hardness of the polishing pad increases in a gradual manner, concurrently with a significant enhancement in MRR. It is noteworthy that hardness emerges as a pivotal factor influencing MRR. Concurrently, the surface roughness of the workpiece undergoes an initial decrease, followed by an increase during the polishing process. This phenomenon may be attributed to the dynamic interaction between the polishing pad and the workpiece surface. It is noteworthy that the damping polishing pad possesses a distinctive porous structure, which facilitates effective transportation and storage of the polishing slurry, thereby ensuring a uniform distribution of the slurry and achieving enhanced surface quality during polishing. Whereas the polyurethane polishing pad exhibited micro-convex particle structure and demonstrated the highest MRR.