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AssigneeSemiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
InventorsKenichiro Nishida, Ryusuke Kawakami, Norihito Kawaguchi, Miyuki Masaki
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The energy distribution in the short-side direction of a rectangular laser beam applied to an amorphous semiconductor film (amorphous silicon film) is uniformized. It is possible to the energy distribution in the short-side direction of the rectangular laser beam by the use of a cylindrical lens array 26 or a light guide 36 and concentrating optical systems 28 and 44 or by the use of an optical system including a diffracting optical element. Accordingly, since the effective energy range of a laser beam applied to the amorphous semiconductor film is widened and the transport speed of a substrate 3 can be enhanced as much, it is possible to improve the processing ability of the laser annealing.
A laser annealing method of reforming an amorphous semiconductor film into a polycrystalline semiconductor film by concentrating a laser beam emitted from a solid laser source into a rectangular laser beam on a surface of the amorphous semiconductor film and applying the rectangular laser beam thereto while moving the rectangular laser beam relative to the amorphous semiconductor film in a short-side direction of the rectangular laser beam, comprising:
A laser annealing device for reforming an amorphous semiconductor film into a polycrystalline semiconductor film by concentrating a laser beam emitted from a solid laser source into a rectangular laser beam on a surface of the amorphous semiconductor film and applying the rectangular laser beam thereto while moving the rectangular laser beam relative to the amorphous semiconductor film in a short-side direction of the rectangular laser beam, comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.