Fast beam manipulation for cross-axis miromaching

A method for dithering a laser beam to form a feature in a workpiece along a beam trajectory, the method comprising:

• generating, from a laser source, multiple laser beam pulses along a laser beam path that forms a laser beam axis with respect to a surface of the workpiece;
• imparting, using a first positioning system, first relative movement of the laser beam axis along the beam trajectory with respect to the surface of the workpiece, wherein the first positioning system provides a first beam deflection range;
• imparting, using a second positioning system, a second relative movement of the laser beam axis superimposed on the first relative movement, wherein the second positioning system that provides a second beam deflection range that is smaller than the first beam deflection range, wherein the second relative movement comprises a direction component that is transverse to the beam trajectory;
• and
• delivering, during a laser pass along the beam trajectory, a laser beam pulse to the workpiece at each of a plurality of selective spot locations within the deflection range of the second positioning system, wherein selected ones of the multiple laser beam pulses are blocked from impinging the workpiece, and wherein the laser beam pulses delivered to the workpiece during the laser pass provide three-dimensional patterning within the deflection range of the second positioning system, wherein the three-dimensional patterning includes patterning that is transverse to the beam trajectory and depthwise at two or more depths with respect to the surface of the workpiece.

A method for dithering a laser beam to form a feature in a workpiece along a beam trajectory, the method comprising:

• generating, from a laser source, multiple laser beam pulses along a laser beam path that forms a laser beam axis with respect to a surface of the workpiece;
• imparting, using a first positioning system, first relative movement of the laser beam axis along the beam trajectory with respect to the surface of the workpiece, wherein the first positioning system provides a first beam deflection range;
• imparting, using a second positioning system, a second relative movement of the laser beam axis superimposed on the first relative movement, wherein the second positioning system that provides a second beam deflection range that is smaller than the first beam deflection range, wherein the second relative movement comprises a direction component that is transverse to the beam trajectory;
• and
• delivering, during a laser pass along the beam trajectory, a laser beam pulse to the workpiece at each of a plurality of selective spot locations within the deflection range of the second positioning system, wherein each selective spot location is spatially closer to a neighboring selective spot location and spatially more distant from spatially non-neighboring selective spot locations, and wherein a temporally sequential laser beam pulse delivered to the workpiece is delivered to a selective non-neighboring spot location within the deflection range of the second positioning system.

A method for dithering a laser beam to form a feature in a workpiece along a beam trajectory, comprising:

• generating, from a laser source, multiple laser beam pulses along a laser beam path that forms a laser beam axis with respect to a surface of the workpiece;
• imparting, using a first positioning system, first continuous relative movement of the laser beam axis along the beam trajectory with respect to the surface of the workpiece, wherein the first positioning system provides a first beam deflection range;
• imparting, using a second positioning system, a second relative movement of the laser beam axis superimposed on the first continuous relative movement, wherein the second positioning system that provides a second beam deflection range that is smaller than the first beam deflection range, wherein the second relative movement comprises a non-zero direction component that is transverse to the beam trajectory;
• and
• delivering, during a primary laser pass along the beam trajectory, a working laser beam pulse having a spot size to the workpiece at each of a plurality of selective spot locations within the deflection range of the second positioning system, wherein the laser source generates a total number of the laser beam pulses during the primary laser pass along the beam trajectory while the laser beam axis is within the second beam deflection range, wherein the total number of the laser beam pulses exceed by greater than 25% a desirable number of working laser beam pulses for impinging the workpiece along the beam trajectory within a distance of one spot size from the beam trajectory, and wherein greater than 80% of the total number of the laser beam pulses are delivered to the workpiece during the primary laser pass along the beam trajectory while the laser beam axis is within the second beam deflection range.