Since the mid-1990s, semiconductor manufacturers have increasingly used chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) as a polishing technique to achieve smooth, clean and level surfaces.  An industry pioneer in the manufacture of CMP polishing slurries, Cabot began manufacturing them in the late 1980s.  Since then, improvements in fumed silica manufacturing, process control and analytical technology have reduced our product and process variability, enabling us to provide the cleanest, and most consistent, products in the industry. 

Chemical mechanical polishing is also used in high quality optical glass, fiber optics, and medical metallurgical applications.