Program controlled dicing of a substrate using a pulsed laser beam

A method of using a pulsed laser for program-controlled dicing of a substrate comprising at least one layer, the method comprising the steps of:

• a. providing program control means and associated data storage means for controlling the pulsed laser;
• b. providing in the associated data storage means a laser cutting strategy file of at least one selected combination of pulse rate, pulse energy and pulse spatial overlap of pulses produced by the laser at the substrate to restrict damage to the respective at least one layer while maximising machining rate for the at least one layer;
• c. providing in the laser cutting strategy file data representative of at least one selected plurality of scans of the respective at least one layer by the pulsed laser necessary to cut through the respective at least one layer when the pulsed laser is operating according to the respective at least one combination stored in the laser cutting strategy file;
• and
• d. using the laser under control of the program control means driven by the laser cutting strategy file to scan the at least one layer with the respective at least one selected plurality of scans at least to facilitate dicing of the substrate such that a resultant die has at least a predetermined die strength and a yield of operational die equals at least a predetermined minimum yield.