Method for processing brittle-hard materials

A method for the separative processing of brittle-hard materials, comprising:

• providing a workpiece made of the brittle-hard materials that lacks any filamentary damages in a volume of the workpiece;
• irradiating a surface of the workpiece with a focused laser beam having a top-hat profile and a wavelength sufficient so that light from the laser beam is absorbed at the surface to heat the surface with a first temperature gradient in a direction from the surface to an interior;
• guiding the laser beam over the surface along an irradiated region so that a second temperature gradient forms along the surface between the irradiated region and a non-irradiated region that is adjacent to the irradiated region;
• and
• interacting the first and second temperature gradients so that thermomechanical stresses caused by the first and second temperature gradients separates the workpiece below the surface by severing a chip from a lateral face of the workpiece.

A method for the separative processing of brittle-hard materials, comprising:

• creating filamentous damage sites next to one another along a separating line in a workpiece made of the brittle-hard materials;
• separating the workpiece along the separating line to define an edge at a lateral face of the workpiece;
• irradiating a surface of the workpiece with a laser beam having a laser beam diameter of between 1 mm and 15 mm and a wavelength sufficient so that light from the laser beam is absorbed at the surface to heat the surface with a first temperature gradient in a direction from the surface to an interior;
• guiding the laser beam over the surface along the edge so that a second temperature gradient forms in the workpiece offset from the edge;
• interacting the first and second temperature gradients so that thermomechanical stresses caused by the first and second temperature gradients severs a chip from the edge;
• and
• chamfering the edge by repeating the irradiating, guiding, and interactive steps to remove chips.