Wafer backside particle mitigation

1. A method of particle mitigation comprising:

obtaining a semiconductor wafer having a nonfunctional backside and a functional frontside on which semiconductor devices are formed by one or more lithography processes;

coating the backside with a mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon;

planarizing the coated backside by a planarizing process;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto a wafer chuck such that the wafer chuck makes direct contact with the coated backside; and

while maintaining the coated backside in direct contact with the wafer chuck, performing a first lithographic process on the frontside, wherein the mitigating layer encapsulates particulate matter and fills in scratches on the backside.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising cleaning the backside by a cleaning process prior to coating the backside.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the planarizing process is chemical mechanical polishing.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the first lithographic process is an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithographic process and the wafer chuck is an electrostatic wafer chuck.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the mitigating layer is amorphous silicon.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising removing the mitigating layer subsequent to performing the first lithographic process.

7. A method of particle mitigation comprising:

obtaining a semiconductor wafer having a nonfunctional backside and a functional frontside on which semiconductor devices are formed by one or more lithography processes;

coating the backside with a mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon;

planarizing the coated backside by a planarizing process;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto a wafer chuck such that the wafer chuck makes direct contact with the coated backside;

while maintaining the coated backside in direct contact with the wafer chuck, performing a first lithographic process on the frontside; and

further comprising, between planarizing the coated backside and placing the semiconductor wafer onto the wafer chuck, coating the coated backside with a stop layer that is compositionally different than the mitigating layer, coating the stop layer with another mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon and planarizing the another mitigating layer by a second planarizing process.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising removing the another mitigating layer and the stop layer subsequent to performing the first lithographic process;

while maintaining the coated and patterned backside in direct contact with the wafer chuck, performing a second lithographic process on the frontside; and

removing the coated backside mitigating layer subsequent to performing the second lithographic process so as to expose the semiconductor wafer.

9. The method of claim 7 further comprising repeating, at least one additional time, coating the backside with the stop layer, coating the stop layer with the another mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon and planarizing the another mitigating layer by the second planarizing process.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising coating the frontside with a protective layer.

11. A method of particle mitigation comprising:

obtaining a semiconductor wafer having a nonfunctional backside and a functional frontside on which semiconductor devices are formed by one or more lithography processes;

coating the backside with a mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon;

planarizing the coated backside by a planarizing process;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto a wafer chuck such that the wafer chuck makes direct contact with the coated backside;

while maintaining the coated backside in direct contact with the wafer chuck, performing a first lithographic process on the frontside;

further comprising coating the frontside with a protective layer; and

further comprising removing the frontside coating prior to performing the first lithographic process.

12. A method of particle mitigation comprising:

obtaining a semiconductor wafer having a nonfunctional backside and a functional frontside on which semiconductor devices are formed by one or more lithography processes;

coating the backside with a mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon material;

planarizing the coated backside by a planarizing process;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto an electrostatic wafer chuck such that the electrostatic wafer chuck makes direct contact with the coated backside; and

while maintaining the coated backside in direct contact with the electrostatic wafer chuck, performing an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithographic process on the frontside;

wherein the mitigating layer encapsulates particulate matter and fills in scratches on the backside.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the mitigating layer is amorphous silicon.

14. The method of claim 12 further comprising removing the mitigating layer subsequent to performing the lithographic process.

15. The method of claim 12 further comprising coating the frontside with a protective layer.

16. A method of particle mitigation comprising:

obtaining a semiconductor wafer having a nonfunctional backside and a functional frontside on which semiconductor devices are formed by one or more lithography processes;

coating the backside with a mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon material;

planarizing the coated backside by a planarizing process;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto an electrostatic wafer chuck such that the electrostatic wafer chuck makes direct contact with the coated backside;

while maintaining the coated backside in direct contact with the electrostatic wafer chuck, performing an extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithographic process on the frontside;

further comprising coating the frontside with a protective layer; and

further comprising removing the frontside coating prior to performing the lithographic process.

17. A method of particle mitigation comprising:

obtaining a semiconductor wafer having a nonfunctional backside and a functional frontside on which semiconductor devices are formed by one or more lithography processes;

coating the backside with a mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon material;

planarizing the coated backside by a planarizing process;

coating the mitigating layer with a stop layer that is compositionally different than the mitigating layer;

coating the stop layer with another mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon material;

planarizing the coated backside by the planarizing process;

repeating, a predetermined number of times, coating the another mitigating layer with the stop layer, coating the stop layer with a next another mitigating layer comprising silicon or amorphous carbon, and planarizing the coated backside by the planarizing process;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto a wafer chuck such that the wafer chuck makes direct contact with the coated backside; and

while maintaining the coated backside in direct contact with the wafer chuck, performing a lithographic process on the frontside.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein after performing the first lithographic process, further comprising:

removing the next another mitigating layer;

removing the stop layer directly adjacent to the next another mitigating layer so as to expose the next another mitigating layer, the another mitigating layer or the first mitigating layer, as the case may be;

placing the semiconductor wafer onto a wafer chuck such that the wafer chuck makes direct contact with the next another mitigating layer, the another mitigating layer or the first mitigating layer, as the case may be;

while maintaining the coated and patterned backside in direct contact with the wafer chuck, performing a second lithographic process on the frontside; and

subsequent to performing the second lithographic process, removing all of the next another mitigating layer, the another mitigating layer and the first mitigating layer so as to expose the semiconductor wafer.

19. The method of claim 17 further comprising coating the frontside with a protective layer.